IC-NRLF 


t>4*S 


62D  CONGRESS  )  C1?1VT .  ,PT?  (  DOCUMENT 

2d  Session       \  SENATE  j     No.  845 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


SPEECH 


OF 


ON.  CARROLL  S.  PAGE 


DELIVERED  IN  THE  SENATE  OF 
THE  UNITED  STATES  JUNE  5,  1912 

ON  SENATE   BILL  3,  TO  COOPERATE  WITH   THE  STATE8 
IN  ENCOURAGING  INSTRUCTION  IN  AGRICULTURE,  THE 
TRADES    AND    INDUSTRIES     AND    HOME    ECONOMICS    IN 
SECONDARY   SCHOOLS;     IN    MAINTAINING   INSTRUCTION 
IN    THESE   VOCATIONAL    SUBJECTS    IN    STATE    NORMAL 
SCHOOLS;    IN    MAINTAINING    EXTENSION    DEPART- 
MENTS IN  STATE  COLLEGES  OF  AGRICULTURE 
AND  THE  MECHANIC  ARTS;  AND  TO  APPRO- 
PRIATE MONEY  AND  REGULATE 
ITS  EXPENDITURE 


This  speech  has  been  printed  as  Senate 
Document  No.  845,  6'2d  Congress,  2d  Ses- 
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JUNE  5,  1912.— Ordered  to  be  printed 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 
1912 


SENATE 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 

SPEECH 

OF 

HON.  CARROLL  S.  PAGE 

DELIVERED  IN  THE  SENATE  OF 
THE  UNITED  STATES  JUNE  5,  1912 

ON  SENATE   BILL  3,  TO  COOPERATE  WITH  THE   STATES 

IN  ENCOURAGING  INSTRUCTION  IN  AGRICULTURE,  THE 

TRADES    AND    INDUSTRIES,    AND    HOME    ECONOMICS    IN 

SECONDARY   SCHOOLS;     IN   MAINTAINING   INSTRUCTION 

IN   THESE   VOCATIONAL    SUBJECTS    IN    STATE    NORMAL 

SCHOOLS;    IN    MAINTAINING    EXTENSION    DEPART- 

MENTS IN  STATE  COLLEGES  OF  AGRICULTURE 

AND  THE  MECHANIC  ARTS;  AND  TO  APPRO- 

PRIATE MONEY  AND  REGULATE 

ITS  EXPENDITURE 


JUNE  5,  1912.— Ordered  to  be  printed 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 
1912 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 


By  Hon.  CARROLL  S.  PAGE,  of  Vermont. 


Mr.  PRESIDENT,  I  approach  the  discussion  of  this  vocational-educa- 
;ion  bill  with  many  misgivings  and  doubts  as  to  the  course  I  should 
pursue. 

I  am  not  unmindful  of  the  limited  time  which  Senators  have  to 
spare  from  the  consideration  of  other  important  problems  now  being 
considered  by  Congress,  and  I  would  be  especially  considerate  of 
their  wishes  that  I  condense  what  I  have  to  say  to  the  minimum. 

On  the  other  hand,  here  is  a  bill  the  importance  of  which  has 
grown  upon  me  until  I  feel  that  Senators  should  have  a  fairly  good 
idea  of  what  it  purposes  to  accomplish. 

Mr.  President,  this  is  a  great  public  question;  a  question  which 
aJfects  the  welfare  not  only  of  our  boys  and  girls  but  of  the  mature 
vocational  workers,  including  the  home  makers  of  the  United  States, 
as  has  no  other  which  has  been  before  Congress  for  more  than  half  a 
century;  a  question  which  is  engaging  the  best  thought  of  eminent 
publicists  and  educators  from  one  end  of  the  country  to  the  other — 
indeed,  throughout  the  civilized  world.  It  is  a  question  which  the 
American  people  have  come  to  believe  directly  affects  the  economic 
conditions  of  the  country  in  a  degree  little,  if  any,  less  than  the 
largest  of  our  large  economic  problems.  It  is  a  question  which  will, 
in  my  judgment,  settle  in  great  measure  the  quality  of  our  citizenship 
in  the  generation  upon  which  we  are  now  entering.  It  is  a  question 
which  will  profoundly  affect  the  cost  of  our  food  supply  as  well  as 
the  amount  which  our  workers  may  earn  with  which  to  meet  that 
higher  cost  of  living  which  is  upon  us.  It  is  a  question  which  in- 
volves appropriations  from  the  National  Treasury  aggregating  nearly 
$15,000,000  annually.  On  a  problem  of  this  magnitude  I  believe 
Senators  should  not  be  heard  to  say  that  they  are  too  busy  with  their 
other  duties  to  give  the  matter  proper  consideration. 

They  will  find  on  returning  home  that  the  question  of  vocational 
education  is  the  subject  of  sermons  in  churches ;  of  earnest  discussions 
in  granges  and  other  farmers'  associations;  that  it  is  regarded  as  a 
burning  and  vital  question  among  labor  organizations  and  manufac- 
turing and  trades  associations ;  and  is,  of  course,  the  subject  of  spe- 
cial consideration  among  those  connected  with  our  institutions  of 
learning  everywhere,  from  the  elementary  schools  up  to  the  universi- 
ties, from  one  end  of  our  country  to  the  other. 

Mr.  President,  I  belie/ve  this  is  one  of  the  most  important  measures 
before  this  Congress,  and  so  believing  I  am  sure  Senators  will  forgive 
me  for  urging  upon  them  something  more  than  a  perfunctory  exami- 
nation of  its  provisions. 

3 


4  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

I  therefore  purpose  to  take  up  the  more  important — the  appro- 
priating— sections  of  the  measure,  and  explain  in  detail  their  different 
provisions  and  why  they  have  been  incorporated  in  the  bill;  and  I 
shall  esteem  it  a  special  favor  to  have  Senators  interrupt  me  as  I 
proceed  whenever  I  fail  to  make  the  purpose  and  meaning  of  any 
section  clear  or  whenever  any  Senator  thinks  he  sees  in  any  of  its 
provisions  points  which  he  believes  are  subject  to  proper  criticism. 

In  this  connection  perhaps  I  should  say  that  at  the  proper  time  I 
shall,  by  direction  of  the  Committee  on  Agriculture  and  Forestry, 
move  that  a  substitute  bill  take  the  place  of  Senate  bill  No.  3,  as  orig- 
inally reported  to  the  Senate  from  the  committee,  and  my  remarks 
at  this  time  will  be  predicated  upon  the  substitute  measure. 

The  title  of  the  bill  is  comprehensive  and  states  in  general  terms 
what  it  seeks  to  accomplish.  I  read : 

To  provide  for  cooperation  with  the  States  in  promoting  instruction  in  agri- 
culture, the  trades  and  industries,  and  home  economics  in  secondary  schools; 
in  preparing  teachers  for  these  vocational  subjects  in  State  colleges  of  agricul- 
ture and  the  mechanic  arts  in  State  normal  schools,  and  in  other  training  schools 
for  teachers  supported  and  controlled  by  the  public ;  in  maintaining  extension 
departments  of  State  colleges  of  agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts;  in  main- 
taining branches  of  State  experiment  stations;  and  to  appropriate  money  and 
regulate  its  expenditure. 

Mr.  President,  I  am  sure  it  will  aid  Senators  in  forming  their  con- 
clusions as  to  the  merits  of  the  bill  to  give  a  brief  statement  of  the 
facts  concerning  its  genesis.  It  was  introduced  in  the  Senate  on  the 
6th  day  of  April,  1911,  and  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Agriculture 
and  Forestry.  Near  the  close  of  the  session  it  was  taken  up  by  that 
committee.  A  brief  consideration  made  it  evident  that  its  adminis- 
trative features  would  probably  need  amendment  in  order  to  better 
articulate  with  the  laws  of  the  several  States.  Having  this  fact  in 
mind,  Senator  Crawford  introduced  and,  with  a  single  dissenting 
vote,  the  committee  passed  the  following  resolution  : 

Resolved,  That  Senator  Page,  as  a  subcommittee  of  one,  be  instructed  to  cor- 
respond with  leading  educators  and  others  interested  in  the  purposes  of  the 
proposed  measure,  and  to  report  to  the  full  committee  the  result  of  his  investi- 
gation, and  to  submit  a  bill  amended  to  conform  to  the  suggestions  he  may 
receive  from  such  correspondence  or  any  he  might  have  to  make.  And  that  the 
committee  approves  the  general  purposes  of  the  bill. 

In  conformity  with  these  resolutions,  letters  were  written  by  me  to 
the  State  superintendents  of  public  instruction  in  every  State  inviting 
a  careful  examination  and  criticism  of  the  bill  and  requesting  such 
suggestions  as  to  amendments  as  would,  in  their  judgment,  perfect  the 
bill  and  make  it  articulate  with  the  school  laws  and  school  conditions 
of  their  respective  States. 

Letters  were  also  written  to  a  large  number  of  other  prominent 
educators  in  every  section  of  the  Union,  inclosing  a  copy  of  the  bill 
and  asking  their  advice  as  to  amendments  which  would  perfect  or 
improve  the  measure. 

The  response  to  these  letters  was  quite  general.  In  a  very  large 
majority  of  the  replies  the  indorsement  of  the  measure  was  unquali- 
fied and  pronounced.  Wherever  local  conditions  seemed  to  demand 
amendments  they  were  suggested,  and  only  from  a  very  few  States 
were  replies  received  which  indicated  disapproval  of  the  general  pur- 
poses of  the  bill. 

Letters  asking  for  suggestions  of  amendments  were  also  addressed 
to  the  governors  of  the  several  States,  to  the  heads  of  State  agricul- 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  0 

• 

tural  colleges,  and  to  men  of  known  prominence  in  educational  affairs 
in  the  various  walks  of  life,  including  editors  of  newspapers  devoted 
to  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  and  home  making. 

Replies  were  received  from  every  State  in  the  Union.  With  less 
than  a  half  dozen  exceptions,  the  replies  received  from  State  super- 
intendents of  public  instruction  and  State  boards  of  education  were 
favorable— most  of  them  enthusiastically  so.  A  few  were  qualifiedly 
favorable,  but  suggested  changes  in  the  administrative  features  or  in 
some  of  the  less  important  details.  Only  two  were  unqualifiedly 
opposed  to  the  bill. 

Mr.  President,  I  have  devoted  more  than  four  solid  months  of  dili- 
gent labor  to  this  bill ;  yet  I  realize,  after  all,  that  personally  I  have 
contributed  onlv  a  small  part  to  the  present  movement  to  broaden  out 


great  ingral 

of  credit  for  formulating  and  perfecting  the  measure. 

While  I  have  had  the  assistance  of  a  large  number  of  educators 
throughout  the  country,  it  is  due  to  Dr.  P.  P.  Claxton,  our  present 
efficient  Commissioner  of  Education ;  to  Dr.  Charles  A.  Prosser,  the 
executive  secretary  of  the  National  Association  for  the  Promotion 
of  Vocational  Education;  and  to  Hon.  Willet  M.  Hays,  Assistant 
Secretary  of  Agriculture,  to  say  that  they  have  given  to  this  work 
an  immense  amount  of  expert  advice  and  assistance;  and  without 
their  aid  I  fear  my  own  part  would  have  proven  heavier  than  I  could 
carry. 

Unless  they  have  given  the  matter  very  careful  study,  I  presume 
few  Senators  know  the  extent  to  which  the  general  subject  of  voca- 
tional education  is  being  discussed  by  the  people  of  this  country.  It 
is  not,  as  many  seem  to  believe,  a  new  question,  with  no  part  yet 
ready  to  be  crystallized  into  law.  The  present  bill  is  a  consensus  of 
opinion  far  more  unanimous  than  is  the  case  with  most  portions  of 
our  constructive  legislation.  ^ 

In  1862  Justin  S.  Morrill,  then  a  Representative  from  the  State  of 
Vermont,  believing  that  the  welfare  of  the  country  demanded  spe- 
cial education  along  the  lines  of  agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts, 
introduced  what  has  been  since  known  as  the  Morrill  agricultural    > 
college  act.    That  it  was  a  measure  pregnant  with  immense  im-/ 
portance  to  the  coming  generations  is  now  everywhere  conceded. 

The  Morrill  Act  has  given  the  country  a  class  of  high-grade  agri- 
cultural and  mechanical  colleges,  from  which  have  been  graduated  men 
qualified  to  take  up  specialized  work  along  agricultural  and  indus- 
trial lines,  the  value  of  which,  from  an  economic  standpoint,  it  would 
to-day  be  difficult  to  overestimate ;  and  these  institutions  have  also 
developed  strong  educational  courses  relating  to  home  making. 

But  could  Senator  Morrill,  wise  as  he  was  in  his  day  and  genera- 
tion, have  lived  until  to-day  and  observed  the  working  out  of  his 
great  educational  measure,  he  would  have  been  compelled  to  confess 
that  in  one  very  important  particular  it  had  failed  to  give  the  results 
which  were  expected  to  flow  therefrom. 

Senator  Morrill  believed,  as  did  those  who  labored  with  him  at 
that  time,  that  the  passage  of  the  Morrill  bill  would  give  an  im- 
mense impetus  to  development  in  rural  affairs;  that  his  bill  would 
result  in  furnishing  the  country  with  a  great  army  of  trained  farmers, 
men  who  would  return  from  the  college  to  the  farm  and  invigorate 


6  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

t 

farm  life  with  new  power  and  improved  farm  methods.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  these  colleges  have  found  their  peculiar  function  to  be  to 
prepare  technicians  in  agriculture,  the  mechanic  arts,  and  in  home 
economics.  The  experience  of  this  and  other  countries  has  fully 
demonstrated  that  the  vocational  education  of  youth  for  the  business 
of  farming  and  for  the  expert  work  in  the  trades  and  industries,  and 
also  for  efficient  home  making,  must  be  provided  for  in  high  schools, 
and,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  Morrill  Act  has  proven  to  be  the  be- 
ginning, the  making  of  the  preliminary  preparations,  for  really 
carrying  vocational  education  to  the  masses  or  our  people. 

No  one  questions  the  great  value  of  the  work  done  by  our  agri- 
cultural colleges  and  by  the  experiment  stations  later  added  thereto ; 
but  the  fact  still  remains  that  as  a  place  where  the  average  boy  on 
the  farm  could  find  a  school  which  would  equip  him  for  farm  life 
and  send  him  back  to  the  farm  imbued  with  that  enthusiasm  for 
agriculture,  the  Morrill  Act  has  not  fulfilled  the  full  expectations 
of  its  author. 

The  important  question  now  pressing  for  solution  in  this  country 
is,  What  can  be  done  to  change  this  condition  and  stem  the  tide  now 
so  strongly  running  from  country  to  city  and,  at  the  same  time, 
prepare  our  city  boys  for  their  work  in  the  nonagricultural  vocations 
and  bring  the  full  force  of  modern  science  to  bear  on  the  making  of 
our  homes  and  the  rearing  of  our  children  ? 

That  something  is  very  badly  needed  to  supplement  the  Morrill 
Act  is  universally  conceded,  and  it  is  to  the  satisfying  of  this  great 
need  that  this  bill  is  in  large  part  directed.  It  attempts  to  provide 
a  plan  for  taking  the  knowledge  which  these  agricultural  colleges 
have  developed  to  all  the  workers  who  need  this  knowledge ;  and 
since  the  task  is  so  vast,  and  since  the  Nation,  through  the  Morrill 
Act,  inaugurated  this  work,  this  bill  proposes  that  the  Nation  shall 
cooperate  with  the  States  in  carrying  the  benefits  to  all  the  people. 

With  this  statement  as  to  the  general  purposes  of  the  bill,  I  shall, 
without  further  preliminaries,  proceed  to  give  the  Senate  a  full  and 
careful  analysis  of  what  it  is,  what  it  appropriates,  what  it  contem- 
plates, and  how  it  so  safeguards  the  moneys  which  are  to  be  dis- 
tributed to  the  several  States  that  they  may  not  be  diverted  to  pur- 
poses other  than  those  contemplated  by  the  measure. 

Let  me  repeat  that  I  hope  no  Senator  interested  in  this  measure — • 
and  I  can  not  believe  that  there  is  any  Senator  who  is  not — will  hesi- 
tate to  interrogate  me  with  perfect  freedom,  not  only  whenever  any 
feature  of  the  bill  seems  to  be  the  proper  subject  of  criticism,  but 
whenever  a  provision  is  not  fully  and  clearly  understood.  If  any 
Senator  does  not  have  the  bill  before  him  I  snail  be  pleased  to  fur- 
nish a  copy  that  he  may,  if  he  desire,  follow  me  as  I  proceed  to  take 
up,  clause  by  clause,  the  different  sections  of  the  measure. 

Mr.  President,  I  wish  as  I  proceed  to  make  clear  to  Senators  the 
fact  that  this  bill  designs  to  take  from  the  Federal  Treasury  only 
such  sums  for  initial  expenditures  as  will  stimulate  and  encourage 
the  several  States  to  go  on  with  the  great  vocational-education  work 
contemplated  by  the  bill,  leaving  the  chief  burden  to  be  borne  by 
the  States  themselves. 

Experience  with  similar  laws  has  shown  that  a  very  small  expendi- 
ture from  the  Federal  Treasury  for  the  cause  of  education  has  re- 
sulted in  stimulating  a  very  large  outlay  on  the  part  of  the  States. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  7 

In  a  hearing  before  the  Committee  on  Agriculture  and  Forestry  of 
the  Senate  Dr.  Howard  Edwards,  president  of  the  Rhode  Island 
State  College,  stated  that  throughout  the  entire  United  States  the 
average  appropriations  made  by  the  several  States  was  fourteen  times 
the  amount  appropriated  by  the  Federal  Government  under  the  Mor- 
rill  and  supplementary  acts.  Indeed,  Dr.  W.  O.  Thompson,  president 
of  the  National  Association  of  Agricultural  Colleges  and  Experiment 
Stations  and  president  of  the  Ohio  State  University,  made  a  state- 
ment before  the  committee  that  in  the  State  of  Ohio  the  appropria- 
tions made  for  educational  work  to  supplement  those  made  by  the 
Federal  Government  under  the  Morrill  Act  and  acts  supplementary 
thereto  were  forty  times  the  amount  appropriated  by  the  Federal 
Government. 

While  there  is  no  basis  for  a  definite  statement  as  to  what  extent 
the  States  will  supplement  the  funds  appropriated  by  this  act,  it  is 
believed  that  within  a  very  few  years  they  will  amount  to  several 
times  the  sum  of  the  Federal  appropriations  made  by  this  bill.  So 
I  say,  Mr.  President,  this  bill  is  simply  an  offer  to  cooperate  with  the 
States  in  this  greatly  needed  improvement  in  our  school  system. 
It  is  designed  to  encourage,  to  stimulate,  to  inspire  the  States  to 
take  up  and  extend  their  w6rk  along  the  vocational-education  lines 
contemplated  by  this  bill. 

Too  much  stress  can  not  be  laid  upon  the  fact  that  this  bill  would 
form  but  a  very  small  additional  amount  for  the  support  of  the 
schools  of  the  United  States,  large  as  its  appropriations  may  at  first 
seem  to  be.  The  expense  of  schools  in  this  country  is,  in  round  num- 
bers, about  $500,000,000  per  year.  The  entire  appropriations  that 
will  be  called  for  by  this  bill  in  1921,  when  the  maximum  sum  has 
been  reached,  will  be  less  than  3  per  cent  of  this  sum. 

There  can  be  little  doubt,  Mr.  President,  that,  with  the  wise  counsel 
and  assistance  of  the  Federal  Commissioner  of  Education  in  stand- 
ardizing vocational  systems  and  arranging,  with  the  cooperation  and 
advice  of  the  educational  boards  of  the  respective  States,  a  wise 
curriculum,  we  shall  give  an  impetus  to  this  much-neglected  work 
of  vocational  education  which  will  enable  it  to  move  forward  with 
that  vigor  and  effectiveness  which  would  be  absolutely  impossible 
under  48  movements  in  no  way  coordinated. 

This  bill  proceeds  upon  the  theory  demonstrated  by  the  Morrill 
land  grant  college  act  of  1862,  and  the  acts  supplemental  thereto, 
that  by  cooperation  between  the  Federal  Government  and  the  States, 
and  among  the  States,  vocational  education  is  at  once  put  forward 
with  more  of  economy,  and  earlier  attains  its  very  important  results 
in  all  parts  of  the  Nation.  The  Nation  wants  results  at  the  earliest 
possible  date.  It  wants  a  more  abundant  supply  of  farm  products, 
more  highly  skilled  workers  in  the  trades  and  industries,  and  more 
efficient  makers  of  the  homes  of  the  people ;  and  it  wants  the  highest 
civilization  which  comes  with  a  school  system  made  more  efficient  in 
general  studies,  and  so  broadened  out  as  to  include  education  in  the 
vocations  of  the  many  who  will  not  enter  the  professions. 

Mr.  President,  I  should  be  very  glad  if  it  were  practicable  to  have 
the  entire  bill  read  at  this  time,  but  I  am  not  unmindful  of  the  fact 
that  Senators  are  sorely  pressed  for  time,  and  that  many  of  them 
probably  could  not  conveniently  listen  to  the  full  reading  of  the 
measure.  To  make  it  possible,  therefore,  for  Senators  to  secure  in 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 


the  smallest  possible  time  a  fairly  good  understanding  of  the  bill,  I 
have  prepared  an  abstract  or  synopsis  of  it.  As  the  bill  is  being  read 
I  hope  Senators  will  feel  entirely  free  to  interject  interrogatories 
whenever  they  desire  additional  information  about  any  section  or 
wish  to  have  the  section  read  in  full. 


APPROPRIATIONS. 


t  Section  1  gives  a  definition  or  construction  to  the  several  descrip- 
tive terms  used  in  specifying  the  classes  of  institutions  which  are  to 
receive  the  benefits  of  the  several  appropriations  under  this  act. 

Section  2  is  a  general  clause  making  the  appropriation  and  stating 
that  the  sums  designated  in  sections  3  to  10,  inclusive,  are  "  for  in- 
struction in  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  and  home  eco- 
nomics, for  agricultural  tests  and  demonstrations,  and  for  adminis- 
trative purposes." 

Section  3  provides  $3,000,000  for  what  is  denominated  in  the  bill 
the  "secondary-school  department  fund."  This  appropriation  is  for 
instruction  in  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  and  home 
economics  in  clearly  defined  departments  or  divisions  of  existing 
high  schools  of  secondary  school  grade.  It  provides  that  this  appro- 
priation shall  begin  with  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1916,  and  is 
allotted  to  the  several  States  and  the  District  of  Columbia  on  the 
basis  of  population. 

It  is  estimated  that  about  15,000  communities  outside  the  large 
cities  will  take  advantage  of  this  appropriation,  or  an  average  of 
300,  or  a  little  more,  for  each  State.  Unquestionably  the  number  will 
increase  from  year  to  year,  and  for  the  first  few  years  there  may  be 
less  than  this  number;  but  upon  the  hypothesis  that  this  number  of 
communities  will  avail  themselves  of  the  provisions  of  this  section 
of  this  bill,  it  would  mean  that  the  Federal  Government  will  contrib- 
ute toward  each  of  these  schools  $200.  If  the  State  should  supple- 
ment this  Federal  fund  with  a  like  fund,  it  would  mean,  of  course, 
$400  that  each  rural  community  would  be  benefited  through  the  joint 
State  and  national  appropriation. 

If,  as  is  expected  will  be  the  case,  the  rural  community  is  asked  to 
match  the  joint  State  and  Federal  appropriation,  it  means  that  each 
rural  community  will  have  a  separate  unit,  room,  or  division  of  its 
school  work  at  each  high  school,  which  will  be  presided  over  by  a 
teacher  costing,  say,  $800  per  year. 

The  bill  provides  that  the  money  shall  be  distributed,  unless  other- 
wise provided,  according  to  the  amount  which  the  local  community 
shall  raise  for  the  same  purpose,  although  it  wisely  preserves  the 
autonomy  of  the  States  by  providing  that  if  any  State  thinks  it  best 
to  distribute  the  fund  upon  some  other  basis  it  can  do  so ;  always  con- 
ditioned, however,  that  the  method  of  distribution  be  approved  by 
the  Department  of  the  Interior,  which,  of  course,  in  this  case  means 
the  Commissioner  of  Education. 

It  should  be  said,  however,  that  under  the  terms  of  the  bill,  the 
State  and  local  communities  would  be  jointly  compelled  to  contribute 
only  twice  as  much  as  the  Federal  appropriation;  but  educators  be- 
lieve that  the  example  set  by  States  like  New  Jersey  and  Massa- 
chusetts—which have  worked  out  this  problem  upon  the  basis  of  a 
contribution  by  the  local  community  equal  to  the  amount  of  the  out- 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  9 

side  help  they  receive — will  be  the  method  followed  in  the  distribu- 
tion of  this  fund.  The  average  appropriation  to  each  State  and  the 
District  of  Columbia  under  the  provisions  of  this  section  is  $61,225. 

Section  4  provides  $3,000.000  for  what  is  known  as  the  "industrial 
or  home-economics  school  fund."  This  appropriation  is  for  the 
maintenance  of  instruction  in  the  trades  and  industries  and  home 
economics  in  separate  industrial  or  home-economics  schools  of  second- 
ary grade.  The  difference  between  this  appropriation  and  the  ap- 
propriation for  what  is  designated  as  the  "  secondary-school  depart- 
ment fund  "  is  that  the  latter  contemplates  assistance  to  the  separate 
divisions  or  departments  devoted  to  vocational  education  in  the  high 
schools  in  the  larger  villages  and  towns  while  the  appropriation  in 
section  4  is  presumably  to  be  used  for  separate  schools  at  industrial 
centers  or  in  cities  large  enough  to  maintain  independent  schools  for 
the  trades  and  industries.  This  appropriation  also  does  not  begin 
until  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1916,  and  is  allotted  to  the  dif- 
ferent States  and  the  District  of  Columbia  in  proportion  to  their 
"population  engaged  in  trade  and  transportation,  and  in  manufac- 
turing and  mechanical  pursuits." 

The  question  may  be  asked  why  the  allotment  is  so  made.  The 
answer  is  that  in  taking  the  Federal  census  the  population  is  divided 
under  certain  subheads,  two  of  which  are  "  Persons  engaged  in  trades 
and  transportation"  and  "Persons  engaged  in  manufacturing  and 
mechanical  pursuits."  The  language  of  this  section  is,  therefore,- 
made  to  conform  to  the  language  of  those  census  subdivisions  which, 
every  10  years  records  those  who  work  in  the  trades  and  industries. 
The  average  appropriation  to  the  different  States  and  the  District  df 
Columbia  under  the  provisions  of  this  section  is  $61,225. 

With  reference  to  the  appropriation  referred  to  in  this  section,  it 
may  also  be  said  that  it  is  estimated  that  30  per  cent  of  the  popula- 
tion of  this  country  will  be  able  to  take  advantage  of  its  benefits ;  and 
if,  as  is  expected,  our  population  reaches  100,000,000  by  1916,  when 
this  appropriation  becomes  available,  it  means  that  $3,000,000  will  be 
distributed  to  $30.000,000  people,  which  would  be  10  cents  per  capita. 

Let  us,  to  illustrate,  take  a  city  of  10,000  population  and  see  what 
kind  of  school  would  naturally  result  from  this  appropriation.  Ten 
thousand  population,  at  10  cents  per  capita,  would  mean  that  the 
Federal  contribution  would  be  $1,000.  If  the  State  should  match 
this  by  an  appropriation  of  a  like  amount,  and  if,  as  it  is  supposed 
will  be  the  case,  the  town  or  city  shall  match  the  joint  Federal  and 
State  appropriation,  it  would  mean  that  the  city  must  raise  $2,000 
to  match  the  $2,000  contributed  by  the  State  and  Federal  Gov- 
ernments. 

In  other  words,  it  would  give  them  a  $4,000  school,  devoted  to  in- 
struction in  the  trades  and  industries  and  home  economics.  A  city  of 
100,000  population  would  have  $40,000  to  devote  to  this  class  of  edu- 
cation. A  city  of  1,000,000  would  have  $400,000. 

Mr.  GALLJNGER.  Mr.  President 

The  VICE  PRESIDENT.  Does  the  Senator  from  Vermont  yield  to  the 
Senator  from  New  Hampshire? 

Mr.  PAGE.  With  pleasure. 

Mr.  GALLINGER.  I  should  like  to  ask  the  Senator  whether  the  Fed- 
eral appropriation  is  contingent  upon  the  State  and  local  appropria- 
tions ? 


10  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

Mr.  PAGE.  Mr.  President,  the  Federal  appropriation  is  contingent 
upon  an  appropriation  from  the  State  and  the  local  communities  of 
at  least  twice  the  amount  of  the  Federal  appropriation. 

Mr.  GALLINGER.  And  unless  the  State  and  the  local  comimmities 
make  that  appropriation,  the  Federal  appropriation  will  not  be 
called  for? 

Mr.  PAGE.  That  is  correct. 

Section  5  appropriates  $3,000,000  for  what  is  designated  as  the 
"  district  agricultural  high-school  fund."  This  appropriation  is  for 
the  maintenance  of  instruction  in  agriculture  and  home  economics  in 
the  district  agricultural  high  schools  to  be  established  under  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act.  This  appropriation  also  begins  with  the  fiscal 
year  ending  June  30,  1916,  and  is  allotted  to  the  several  States  in 
proportion  to  the  number  of  persons  engaged  in  agricultural  pursuits 
as  shown  by  the  preceding  Federal  census.  It  provides  a  special  ap- 
propriation of  $5,000  for  each  State  with  less  than  100,000  people 
engaged  in  agriculture.  The  average  appropriation  for  each  State 
under  the  provisions  of  this  section,  basing  the  estimate  upon  the 
census  of  1900 — I  have  not  the  figures  under  the  census  of  1910 — 
would  be  $65,000. 

Section  6  appropriates  $1,000,000  for  what  is  designated  as  the 
"  branch-station  fund."  This  appropriation  is  for  the  maintenance  of 
branch  or  demonstration  stations  upon  farms  connected  with  the  dis- 
trict agricultural  high  schools  established  under  the  provisions  of 
section  5.  This  fund  is  designed  to  give  these  large  agricultural  high 
schools,  one  of  which  will  be  in  each  group  of  8  or  10  counties,  a 
practical  turn.  Here  the  teachers  and  pupils  will  live  on  a  large 
farm,  and  much  of  the  practical  work  will  be  done  by  the  students. 
Here  experimenters  will  test  and  breed  plants  and  animals  especially 
adapted  to  the  conditions  of  the  surrounding  counties.  Here  the  mat- 
ter of  rotation  schemes  needed  by  the  region  will  be  under  test,  and 
the  use  of  fertilizers  on  the  local  soils  will  be  studied. 

Here  the  college  and  department  extension  workers  will  center  such 
of  their  work  as  is  needed  by  the  students.  Here  the  students  will 
gain  a  knowledge  of  research  work,  that  those  gifted  in  this  form  of 
public  service  may  be  drawn  into  this  important  work.  This  appro- 
priation begins  with  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1916,  and  is  al- 
lotted to  the  several  States  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  persons 
engaged  in  agricultural  pursuits.  It  makes  a  special  appropriation 
of  $2.000  for  States  having  a  population  of  less  than  100,000  people 
engaged  in  agriculture.  The  average  appropriation  to  each  State 
under  the  provisions  of  this  bill  is  $21,833. 

Touching  the  $4,000,000  appropriated  for  this  district  agricultural 
high-school  fund  and  the  branch-station  fund  it  will  probably  work 
about  as  follows : 

It  is  estimated  that  there  will  be  about  1  school  for  whites  in  each 
congressional  district  outside  of  the  cities,  or  about  325  in  all.  If  in 
the  Southern  States  there  shall  be  75  additional  schools  established 
for  the  colored  race,  it  will  give  us  a  total  of  400  schools.  The  fund 
to  be  divided  to  each  of  these  schools  will  be  substantially  as  follows : 

First,  the  Government  appropriates  $3,000,000  under  section  5 ;  the 
State  must  appropriate  the  other  $6,000,000 ;  the  Federal  Government 
appropriates  $1,000,000  for  the  branch  stations  connected  with  these 
schools  under  section  6;  and  to  this  sum  another  $1,000,000  must  be 


VOCATIOKAL  EDUCATION.  11 

added  by  the  State,  making  a  total  of  $11,000,000  to  be  divided  among 
400  schools,  or  $27,500  for  each  school,  including  the  State  and 
Federal  appropriations. 

Men  experienced  in  the  management  of  schools  of  this  kind  say  it 
will  cost  about  $100  for  each  pupil  to  conduct  such  a  really  good 
school  as  is  contemplated  by  this  act.  If  this  supposition  be  correct, 
it  means  that  every  year  there  will  be  turned  out  from  these  different 
agricultural  schools  275  boys  and  girls  who,  it  is  hoped,  will  return 
to  the  farm  to  join  with  the  father — who,  meanwhile,  has  been  edu- 
cated under  the  provisions  of  section  7  of  this  bill,  which  provides 
for  college  extension  and  farm  demonstration  work — in  vitalizing, 
energizing,  and  stimulating  a  more  intelligent  and  more  profitable 
management  of  the  farm. 

Section  7  appropriates  $3,000,000  for  what  is  designated  as  the 
"  extension-work  fund,"  being  for  the  support  at  each  State  college 
of  agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts  of  an  extension  department  or 
division  to  enable  the  several  State  colleges  of  agriculture  to  take  to 
the  adult  farmer  upon  the  farm  in  his  own  locality  the  accumulated 
results  of  experimentation  and  research  at  the  agricultural  colleges 
and  experiment  stations  and  at  the  departments  of  agriculture ;  and  is 
designed  to  further  the  work  of  teaching  and  demonstrating  in  a 
practical  way  to  persons  not  in  the  schools  how  actual  farming  can  be 
conducted  with  more  profitable  results  than  at  present.  This  appro- 
priation begins  with  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1913,  the  appro- 
priation for  that  year  being  $480,000,  or  $10,000  for  each  of  the  48 
States.  This  sum  is  increased  from  year  to  year  until  1921,  when  it 
reaches  the  maximum  sum  of  $2,980,000.  All  sums,  aside  from  the 
$10,000  per  year  to  each  State,  are  to  be  allotted  on  the  basis  of  popu- 
lation engaged  in  agricultural  pursuits.  The  average  sum  to  each 
State  in  1921  and  thereafter  is  $62,083. 

Section  8  appropriates  $480,000  for  what  is  designated  as  the 
"college  teachers'  training  fund."  This  appropriation  is  for  the 
preparation  of  teachers  in  departments  or  divisions  of  education  in 
the  State  colleges  of  agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts  of  the  respective 
States,  to  give  instruction  in,  or  closely  related  to,  agriculture,  the 
trades  and  industries,  and  home  economics.  I  wish  to  make  it  plain 
that  this  measure  not  only  provides  the  means  for  the  employment 
of  teachers  in  the  school  service  and  in  college-extension  service  but 
also  the  means  with  which  these  teachers  may  be  trained  by  the  agri- 
cultural colleges  and  State  normal  and  other  teachers'  training 
schools.  It  begins  with  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1913,  and 
allots  $10,000  to  each  of  the  48  States. 

Mr.  President,  this  appropriation  was  not  called  for  by  the  original 

bill,  and  perhaps  it  is  due  to  the  Senate  that  I  explain  why  it  has 
i  1 1  i  J 

been  added. 

In  December  last  the  Southern  Commercial  Congress,  an  organiza- 
tion having  for  its  special  object  the  promotion  of  the  welfare  of  the 
the  South,  held  a  meeting  here  in  Washington  for  the  purpose  of 
discussing  vocational  education  generally,  and  especially  with  refer- 
ence to  its  effect  upon  the  Southern  States.  Upon  its  invitation,  the 
executive  committee  of  the  American  Association  of  Agricultural 
Colleges  and  Experiment  Stations  attended  in  a  body  and  assisted 
in  the  discussion  and  amendment  of  this  bill.  This  meeting  was 
presided  over  by  the  senior  Senator  from  Florida,  Mr.  Fletcher,  and 


12  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

was  attended  by  a  large  number  of  leading  educators  from  all  parts 
of  the  country,  the  session  lasting  for  three  days.  A  subcommittee 
took  up  the  bill  line  by  line  and  section  by  section.  Such  features  as 
were  deemed  objectionable  were  eliminated,  amendments  were  intro- 
duced wherever  it  was  believed  they  would  improve  the  measure,  and 
after  the  bill  was  finally  perfected  and  completed  the  following 
resolution  was  unanimously  adopted.  I  read  this  because  it  shows 
the  unanimity  with  which  they  reached  their  conclusion : 

Resolved,  That  the  conference  of  friends  of  vocational  education  assembled 
in  Washington  December  14,  15,  and  16,  1911,  select  a  committee  on  ways  and 
means,  whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  further  the  interests  of  the  Page  bill  (S.  3)  and 
to  work  for  its  successful  passage. 

This  subcommittee  to  revise  the  bill  was  composed  of  men  of 
national  reputation  on  educational  matters,  and  was  as  follows: 

Hon.  Coe  I.  Crawford,  United  States  Senator,  chairman ;  Dr.  P.  P. 
Claxton,  United  States  Commissioner  of  Education — he  is  our  new 
Commissioner  of  Education  from  the  South;  Dr.  W.  O.  Thompson, 
president  Ohio  State  University;  Dean  H.  L.  Russell,  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Wisconsin;  Hon.  Willet  M.  Hays,  Assistant  Secretary  of 
Agriculture;  Mr.  G.  G.  Dawe,  managing  director  of  the  Southern 
Commercial  Congress ;  and  Dr.  J.  H.  Connell,  president  of  the  Okla- 
homa State  Agricultural  and  Mechanical  College. 

The  question  of  the  unpreparedness  of  the  country  to  take  up  this 
work  was  one  of  the  leading  topics  of  discussion  at  this  meeting,  and 
the  conclusion  reached  was  that  we  must  add  another  half  million 
dollars  to  the  appropriation  for  the  education  of  teachers  by  agri- 
cultural and  mechanical  colleges  and  that  we  should  put  off  the  time 
when  the  main  features  of  the  appropriation  should  become  avail- 
able till  the  year  ending  June  30,  1916. 

This  change  not  only  gives  the  several  States  sufficient  time  to 
prepare  for  the  education  of  teachers,  but  it  gives  them  ample  oppor- 
tunity to  enact  any  legislation  which  may  seem  to  be  necessary  to 
make  the  State  laws  harmonize  with  the  national  law ;  and  it  hardly 
need  be  said  that  if  during  the  next  three  years  it  should  be  found 
that  any  minor  changes  not  affecting  the  fundamental  principles  of 
the  bill  are  desirable,  the  National  Congress  will  be  quick  to  make 
those  changes. 

Section  9  appropriates  $1,000,000  for  what  is  known  as  the  "  normal 
teachers'  training  fund,"  being  for  the  preparation  of  teachers  to  give 
instruction  in,  or  closely  related  to,  agriculture,  the  trades  and  indus- 
tries, and  home  economics  in  State  normal  schools  and  in  other 
training  schools  for  teachers. 

This  appropriation  begins  with  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30, 
1913,  that  the  preparation  of  teachers  may  begin  at  once,  and  is 
allotted  to  the  several  States  and  the  District  of  Columbia  in  pro- 
portion to  population.  It  makes  a  special  appropriation  of  $3,000 
to  each  of  the  States  having  a  population  of  less  than  300,000.  The 
average  appropriation  to  each  State  under  the  provisions  of  this 
section  is  $21,333. 

Section  10  appropriates  $90,000  for  what  is  designated  as  the  "  ad- 
ministration fund."  This  appropriation  is  subdivided  as  follows: 
Forty  thousand  dollars  to  be  expended  by  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  in  paying  the  necessary  expenses  of  administering  the  pro- 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  13 

visions  of  this  act  relating  to  schools  of  secondary  grade  and  to  the 
preparation  of  teachers  in  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  and 
home  economics;  $35,000  to  be  expended  by  the  Secretary  of  Agri- 
culture, of  which  $20,000  is  for  administering  the  provisions  of  the 
act  relating  to  extension  departments  or  divisions  and  branch  stations, 
$15,000  to  enable  him  to  cooperate  with  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior 
in  relation  to  schools  of  secondary  grade  giving  instruction  in  agri- 
culture and  home  economics  and  to  the  preparation  of  teachers  in 
these  vocations;  and  $15,000  to  be  expended  by  the  Secretary  of 
Commerce  and  Labor  in  paying  the  expenses  of  administering,  in 
cooperation  with  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  those  provisions  of 
the  act  relating  to  instruction  in  the  trades  and  industries  and  in 
the  preparation  of  teachers  for  these  vocations.  These  appropria- 
tions begin  with  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1913. 

To  summarize,  let  me  say  that  in  1921,  when  the  maximum  shall 
have  been  reached,  the  appropriations  will  aggregate  $14,752,000,  as 
follows : 

For  the  teaching  of  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  and 
home  economics,  in  connection  with  our  general  secondary  or 
public  high-school  system $3,  000,  000 

For  the  teaching  of  the  trades  and  industries  and  home  economics 
in  separate  schools 3,  000,  000 

For  instruction  in  agriculture  and  home  economics  in  State  district 
agricultural  schools 3, 125,000 

For  agricultural  extension  work 2,980,000 

For  branch  experiment  and  demonstration  stations  at  district  agri- 
cultural schools 1,  050,  000 

For  the  education  of  teachers  at  State  normal  and  other  training 

schools 1,  027, 000 

For  the  education  of  teachers  at  State  agricultural  colleges 480, 000 

For  administration  expenses 90, 000 


Total 14,  752,  000 

I  have  had  prepared  a  tabulated  statement  showing  the  exact 
amount  appropriated  by  this  bill  from  1913  to  1921,  inclusive,  and  ask 
leave  that  it  may  be  included  in  the  Eecord  as  a  part  of  my  remarks. 
It  shows  the  appropriations  for  each  particular  feature  of  the  bill  in 
detail  and  in  the  aggregate  for  each  year.  The  appropriations  in- 
crease from  1913  to  1921  as  follows: 

1913—   $2,  077,  000 

1914 2,  477,  000 

1915 2,  777,  000 

1916 13,  252,  000 

1917 13,  552,  000 

1918 13,  852,  000 

1919 14, 152,  000 

1920 14,  452,  000 

1921 14,  752,  000 

The  statement  referred  to  follows. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 


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VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  15 


Mr.  JONES.  Mr.  President- 


The  PRESIDING  OFFICER  (Mr.  Sutherland  in  the  chair).  Does  the 
Senator  from  Vermont  yield  to  the  Senator  from  Washington  ? 

Mr.  PAGE.  Yes. 

Mr.  JONES.  The  Senator  has  passed  section  9  ? 

Mr.  PAGE.  I  have.  I  will  be  very  glad  to  answer  any  question, 
however,  relating  to  that  section. 

Mr.  JONES.  In  section  9,  on  page  8, 1  notice  the  provision  is  for  the 
preparation  of  teachers  "  in  State  normal  schools  and  in  other  train- 
ing schools  for  teachers."  In  our  State  university,  for  instance,  which 
is  a  very  large  educational  institution,  they  give  special  training  to 
teachers,  although  it  is  not  termed,  of  course,  a  training  school ;  it  is 
a  State  university.  I  would  like  to  know  whether,  in  the  opinion  of 
the  Senator,  that  university  would  come  under  the  provisions  of  this 
section  ? 

Mr.  PAGE.  I  am  happy  to  say  that  that  matter  was  very  carefully 
discussed,  and  the  decision  reached  was  that  any  school  which  the 
State  board  for  vocational  education  regarded  as  a  training  school 
for  teachers  might  properly  be  included  within  the  provisions  of  the 
section. 

Mr.  JONES.  Would  the  Senator  have  any  objection  to  striking  out, 
in  line  2,  the  word  "  training,"  before  the  word  "  schools,"  and  insert- 
ing after  the  word  "  schools  "  the  words  "  furnishing  special  training 
for  teachers,"  so  as  to  make  it  read : 

That  for  the  preparation  of  teachers  to  give  instruction  in  or  closely  related 
to  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  and  home  economics  in  State  normal 
schools  and  in  other  schools  furnishing  special  training  for  teachers— 

And  so  forth. 

Mr.  PAGE.  I  can  not  see  any  objection  to  doing  so. 

Mr.  JONES.  I  hope  the  Senator  will  consider  that  suggestion  when 
the  bill  comes  up.  I  think  that  would  make  it  clearer  than  the  lan- 
guage of  the  section  as  it  now  stands.  I  have  some  doubt  whether 
under  the  language  of  the  section  our  State  university  would  come 
under  the  terms  of  the  bill. 

Mr.  PAGE.  If  the  Senator  will  study  the  bill  in  its  entirety  he  will 
find,  as  he  goes  through  it,  that  we  have  made  a  good  many  provisions 
conditioned  upon  the  approval  of  the  State  board  of  control  or  board 
for  vocational  education,  and  conditioned  further  upon  securing  the 
assent  of  the  Department  of  the  Interior,  which  means  the  Commis- 
sioner of  Education.  There  is  no  design  on  the  part  of  those  inter- 
ested in  the  bill  to  deprive  any  State  of  the  right  to  determine  what 
are  training  schools  for  teachers. 

Mr.  JONES.  That  is  true ;  and  yet  when  the  bill  confines  it  to  certain 
described  schools,  no  matter  what  may  be  the  provision  thereafter,  it 
is  confined  to  those  schools.  I  doubt  if  the  language  "  training 
schools  for  teachers  "  would  include  the  State  university,  which  is 
not  classed  as  a  training  school  for  teachers.  Therefore  I  wanted  to 
suggest  this  change  in"  the  language  for  the  Senator's  future  con- 
sideration. 

Mr.  PAGE.  I  certainly  see  no  objection  to  it  now.  I  will  give  it 
consideration  and  report  to  the  Senator  later. 

I  would  especially  direct  the  attention  of  the  Senate  to  the  fact 
that  every  section  of  this  bill  has  been  carefully  considered  and  every 


16  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

safeguard  provided  to  prevent  the  diversion  of  any  fund  from  the 
purpose  for  which  the  appropriation  has  been  made.  I  am  sure  Sen- 
ators  can  have  but  a  slight  appreciation  of  the  details  which  have 
been  wrought  out  in  this  bill.  First,  to  the  end  that  its  provisions 
might  articulate  satisfactorily  with  State  laws;  and,  second,  that 
funds  appropriated  by  the  measure  may  never  be  diverted,  lost, 
or  squandered. 

Mr.  President,  I  have  prepared  with  considerable  care  a  statement 
showing  in  detail  the  administrative  features  of  the  bill,  and  I  am 
prepared  to  go  on  at  length  and  explain  fully  how  the  law  is  to  be 
administered,  how  the  appropriations  are  to  be  safeguarded,  and 
what  is  required  of  the  several  States  in  order  that  they  may  partici- 
pate in  these  appropriations. 

As  I  proceed  to  the  discussion  of  this  measure,  I  will  refer  briefly 
to  a  few  of  the  more  important  sections  covering  the  administrative 
features  of  the  bill. 

ADMINISTRATION. 

Section  11  safeguards  the  funds  appropriated  for  schools  of  the 
secondary  grade  and  the  preparation  of  teachers  for  these  schools. 
It  charges  the  Secretary  ot  the  Interior  with  the  duty,  and  gives  him 
the  necessary  power  to  administer  the  provisions  of  this  act  in  rela- 
tion to  the  $9,000,000  appropriated  for  schools  teaching  the  trades 
and  industries,  home  economics,  and  agriculture,  as  provided  for  in 
sections  3,  4,  and  5  of  this  act;  the  $480,000  for  the  education  of 
teachers  in  State  agricultural  colleges,  as  provided  in  section  8 ;  and 
the  $1.000,000  appropriated  for  the  education  of  teachers  in  State 
normal  and  other  training  schools,  as  provided  in  section  9.  Section 
11  also  provides  that  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  shall  have  the 
cooperation  of  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture  and  the  Secretary  of 
Commerce  and  Labor. 

Section  12  safeguards  the  other  $4,000,000  appropriated  in  sections 
6  and  7.  It  charges  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture  with  the  dutj^,  and 
to  him  is  given  the  power,  to  administer  the  provisions  of  the  act 
relating  to  the  $1,000,000  appropriated  for  branch  stations  at  the 
district  agricultural  high  schools,  and  the  $3,000,000  appropriated  for 
the  extension-work  fund,  and  it  authorizes  him  to  aid  the  Secretary 
of  the  Interior  in  carrying  put  the  provisions  of  this  act,  so  far  as 
they  relate  to  instruction  in  agriculture  and  home  economics  in 
schools  of  the  secondary  grade,  and  the  preparation  of  teachers  for 
those  vocations. 

Section  13  gives  the  Secretary  of  Commerce  and  Labor  authority 
to  assist  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  in  carrying  out  those  provisions 
of  the  act  which  relate  to  instruction  in  the  trades  and  industries  and 
the  preparation  of  teachers  for  those  vocations. 

The  question  may  be  asked  as  to  why  the  administration  of  this 
act  has  not  been  left  with  a  single  department.  The  answer  is  that 
after  a  careful  study  of  the  matter  and  after  conferring  with  those 
whom  I  think  best  qualified  by  experience  to  advise  concerning  the 
administrative  features  of  the  bill,  I  have  become  satisfied  that,  so 
far  as  they  apply  to  supervision  of  the  extension  work  in  agriculture 
and  to  the  branch-station  work  provided  for  in  the  bill,  they  may 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  17 

best  be  left  to  the  Department  of  Agriculture  to  administer.  On  the 
other  hand  supervision  of  the  schools  provided  for  bv  the  bill  may 
be  left  to  the  Commissioner  of  Education,  who  will,  of  course,  be  the 
direct  representative  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  in  administer- 
ing that  part  of  the  act  which  it  is  made  the  duty  of  that  official  to 
administer. 

As  to  the  position  occupied  by  the  Secretary  of  Commerce  and 
Labor  with  reference  to  this  bill,  it  may  be  said  that  the  labor  organi- 
zations have  come  to  regard  that  official  as  the  connecting  link  be- 
tween the  Government  and  themselves;  and  as  the  Department  of 
Agriculture  has  long  been  the  special  agency  in  touch  with  agricul- 
tural and  home-makers'  organizations,  they  have  asked  that  the 
Secretary  of  Commerce  and  Labor  might  be  vested  with  a  coopera- 
tive relation  in  connection  with  those  schools  which  are  to  teach  the 
trades  and  industries.  It  has  therefore  seemed  eminently  wise  that 
the  Departments  of  Agriculture  and  of  Commerce  and  Labor  be 
authorized  to  give  cooperative  assistance  to  the  Department  of  the 
Interior  and  thus  help  the  Bureau  of  Education  to  have  the  widest 
possible  support. 

Section  14  provides  that  in  order  that  any  State  may  secure  the 
benefits  of  this  act  it  shall,  through  the  legislative  authority  of  said 
State,  accept  its  provisions  and  shall  designate  a  State  custodian  to 
receive  and  be  responsible  for  each  and  all  of  the  seven  funds  appro- 
priated. I  would  call  the  attention  of  Senators  especially  to  the  last 
paragraph  of  this  section,  for  in  many  respects  it  contains  one  of  the 
most  important  changes  made  in  the  bill  as  originally  introduced. 
It  reads  as  follows : 

Any  State  or  the  District  of  Columbia  may  accept  the  benefit  of  any  one  or 
more  of  the  respective  funds  herein  appropriated  to  it  and  many  defer  the 
acceptance  of  the  benefit  of  any  one  or  more  of  such  funds,  and  shall  be  required 
to  meet  only  the  conditions  imposed  in  relation  to  those  funds  the  benefit  of 
which  it  has  accepted. 

This  paragraph  has  been  incorporated  in  the  bill  at  the  suggestion 
of  several  States  which  were  in  doubt  as  to  whether  they  would  or 
would  not  deem  it  advisable  to  accept  all  the  appropriations  and 
provisions  of  the  bill,  as  they  were  required  to  do  under  the  measure 
as  it  was  originally  drawn,  in  order  to  be  the  recipients  of  any  of 
the  appropriations  named  in  the  measure. 

The  effect  of  this  amendment  is  to  leave  it  optional  with  any  State 
to  accept  any  one  or  all  of  the  appropriations  and  to  permit  it  to 
defer  the  acceptance  of  any  one  or  more  of  its  provisions  until  such 
time  as  the  State  may  wish  to  avail  itself  of  the  benefits  of  those 
particular  provisions. 

My  judgment  is  that,  without  a  single  exception,  every  State  wil 
avail  itself  of  every  provision  of  the  bill.  Inasmuch  as  the  $3,000,000 
appropriation  for  each  of  the  three  classes  of  secondary  schools— 
$9,000,000  in  all— and  only  a  part  of  the  appropriation  for  college 
extension  work  becomes  effective  until  1916,  all  the  States  will  be 
given  ample  opportunity  to  provide  by  legislative  enactment  for 
taking  advantage  of  the  provisions  of  the  bill. 

I  confess  in  this  respect  I  may  be  mistaken.    My  good  friend  the 
junior  Senator  from  Louisiana  [Mr.  Thornton]  expresses  a  doubt  of 
49159— S.  Doc.  845,  62—2 2 


18  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

his  own  State  accepting  all  the  provisions  of  the  measure.  I  believe 
that  within  five  years  every  State  will  not  only  be  accepting  the 
provisions  and  appropriating  enough  to  cover  its  provisions  but  a 
good  deal  more.  But,  of  course,  that  is  a  matter  of  opinion. 

I  believe  there  is  no  State  in  which  there  will  not  be  a  meeting  of 
the  legislature  by  1916. 

Section  15  provides  that  States  must,  by  legislative  enactment, 
designate  a  "board  of  vocational  education,"  which  shall  have  all 
necessary  power  to  cooperate  with  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  in 
the  administration  of  the  provisions  of  the  act  relating  to  the  indus- 
trial schools  authorized  by  the  act  and  the  training  of  teachers.  This 
board  may  consist  either  of  the  board  of  education  or  other  body 
now  having  charge  of  tke  administration  of  public  education  in  the 
several  States,  or  it  may  be  a  new  board  to  be  established  with 
special  reference  to  the  new  educational  system  which  this  legislation 
will  initiate. 
.  Mr.  HEYBURN.  Mr.  President 

The  PRESIDING  OFFICER.  Does  the  Senator  from  Vermont  yield  to 
the  Senator  from  Idaho? 

Mr.  PAGE.  With  pleasure. 

Mr.  HEYBURN.  I  suggest  to  the  Senator  that  some  States  have  con- 
stitutional provisions  covering  the  organization  and  government  of 
the  public  schools  and  it  would  seem  that  it  might  be  necessary  to 
change  the  constitutional  provisions  in  order  to  authorize  the  creation 
of  the  board.  I  have  the  constitution  of  one  State  before  me  where 
it  makes  a  provision  definite  as  to  the  constitution  of  the  educational 
board. 

I  understand  the  Senator  to  say  that  the  States  will  be  required  to 
create  a  new  board,  because  it  would  be  in  effect  a  new  board.  In 
that  case  you  would  have  to  change  the  constitution  of  the  State. 

Mr.  PAGE.  That  condition  has  been  suggested  in  regard  to  one  or 
more  of  the  States.  As  I  think  the  matter  will  work  out,  your  State 
legislature  will  make  the  board  authorized  by  your  constitution  the 
vocational  education  board  to  take  charge  of  this  field. 

Mr.  HEYBURN.  The  State  legislature  would  not  have  power  to  legis- 
late away  the  provisions  of  the  constitution  or  to  change  it.  It  could 
not  be  done  except  by  a  change  of  the  constitution  itself.  The  legis- 
lature was  not  invested  with  power  in  this  case  to  make  any  change 
whatever.  It  was  thought  dangerous  to  leave  that  to  the  legislature, 
because  it  would  be  subject  to  the  vicissitudes  of  changing  adminis- 
trations and  changing  opinions.  So  in  making  the  constitution  we 
fixed  it  so  definitely  as  that  the  legislature  would  not  have  control 
over  it.  Now,  it  might  be  desirable  to  have  such  a  board  as  is  sug- 
gested in  the  bill,  but  it  would  be  beyond  the  power  of  the  legislature 
to  create  it. 

Mr.  PAGE.  No;  not  at  all.  Can  the  Senator  tell  me  whether  that 
board  as  authorized  by  his  State  constitution  is  made  up  of  one, 
two,  or  three  members  ? 

Mr.  HEYBURN.  The  board  consists  of  the  superintendent  of  public 
instruction,  the  secretary  of  state,  and  the  attorney  general. 

Mr.  PAGE.  I  should  like  to  ask  the  Senator  further  if  he  can  see 
any  objection,  in  view  of  your  constitution,  to  saying  that  the  board 
authorized  by  the  constitution  shall  be  the  board  which  shall  have 
charge  of  this  fund? 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  jg 

Mr.  HETBUEN.  In  section  2  of  article  9  there  is  this  provision- 

The  general  supervision  of  the  public  schools  of  the  State- 

And  of  course  that  would  include  the  distribution  of  the  money- 


for  its 

Mr.  PAGE.  Mr.  President,  this  is  not  a  new  matter.  It  has  been 
discussed  by  educators  to  quite  an  extent.  I  submit  to  the  Senator 
that  a  simple  enactment  by  the  Legislature  of  Idaho,  making  this 
board  of  education  the  board  of  vocational  education  called  for  by 
the  bill,  would  give  you  the  most  perfect  authority  for  handling  this 
appropriation.  If  I  am  not  right  about  this,  I  desire  to  have  the 
Senator  suggest  some  amendment.  I  think  I  am  correct  about  it.  Let 
me  read  it  again: 

This  board  may  consist  either  of  the  board  of  education  or  other  body  now 
having  charge  of  the  administration  of  public  education  in  the  several  States- 

It  seems  to  me  that  this  is  exactly  the  language  necessary  to  meet 
the  conditions  of  the  Senator's  State.  Let  me  read  it  again  for  the 
benefit  of  the  Senator  : 

This  board  may  consist  either  of  the  board  of  education  or  other  body  now 
having  charge  of  the  administration  of  public  education  in  the  several  States,  or 
it  may  be  a  new  board  to  be  established  with  special  reference  to  the  new  edu- 
cational system  which  this  legislation  will  initiate. 

It  may  be  a  general  State  board  dealing  with  these  appropriations 
in  their  broader  relations,  delegating  the  details  to  existing  State 
boards  or  departments  in  charge  of  educational  matters,  or  it  may  be 
a  State  board  in  immediate  charge  of  the  schools.  The  idea  has  been 
to  interfere  as  little  as  possible  with  any  suitable  machinery  which 
the  States  may  already  have  for  carrying  forward  the  work  of  their 
schools  and  to  give  entire  freedom  to  them  in  making  such  changes 
in  their  plans  for  the  administration  of  public  education  as  they  may 
desire. 

There  has  been  some  little  criticism  of  the  proposal  for  a  board  of 
control  or  board  for  vocational  education  in  the  States,  but  I  believe 
that  where  the  matter  has  been  explained  to  those  who  have  written 
me  letters  of  criticism,  the  objections  have  been  removed. 

I  think  in  every  case  where  I  have  taken  up  this  matter  with  edu- 
cators or  with  boards  of  education  they  have  been  fully  satisfied 
with  the  provisions  of  this  section  as  it  now  reads.  Bear  in  mind 
that  this  is  a  provision  made  to  meet  just  the  exact  conditions  sug- 
gested by  the  Senator  from  Idaho. 

In  several  of  the  States  educational  work  is  under  the  charge  of 
a  single  head,  usually  designated  the  State  superintendent  of  public 
instruction  or  State  superintendent  of  education. 

This  bill  makes  it  necessary  that  the  board  for  vocational  educa- 
tion shall  be  made  up  of  at  least  three  persons.  But  if  a  State  de- 
sires to  make  no  change  in  its  present  administrative  machinery  it 
can  merely  designate  the  governor  and  other  officers  as  ex  officio 
members  of  this  board  to  work  with  the  State  superintendent  of 
public  instruction  or  other  already  constituted  agencies. 


20  VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION. 

Section  16  provides  for  the  establishment  of  those  district  agricul- 
tural high  schools  for  which  section  5  of  the  bill  appropriates  $3,000,- 
000.  It  provides  that  there  shall  be  at  least  1  school  for  each  15 
counties,  and  that  there  shall  not  be  more  than  1  for  each  5  counties 
or  fraction  thereof.  This  provision  is  designed  to  be  so  elastic  that 
no  State  now  having  agricultural  schools  will  have  difficulty  in  ad- 
justing these  schools  to  the  provisions  of  the  bill;  and  yet  it  safe- 
guards the  measure  by  providing  against  the  creation  of  a  multi- 
plicity of  weak,  inefficient  one-county  schools — 

Mr.  JOHNSTON  of  Alabama.  I  should  like  to  ask  the  Senator  a  ques- 
tion. He  states  that  the  district  shall  be  composed  of  not  less  than 
five  counties. 

Mr.  PAGE.  Of  not  less  than  five  counties.  Have  you  any  of  your 
schools  predicated  upon  less  than  five  counties  in  a  district? 

Mr.  JOHNSTON  of  Alabama.  We  have  a  school  for  each  congres- 
sional district,  and  one  county  alone  has  a  population  more  than 
sufficient  to  furnish  the  apportionment  for  a  Member  of  Congress. 

Mr.  PAGE.  But  you  could  attach  to  your  largest  city  or  your 
largest  district  some  of  the  outlying  counties. 

Mr.  JOHNSTON  of  Alabama.  That  is  only  one  county,  and  we  have 
so  many  people  in  that  one  county  that  it  is  more  than  enough  to 
make  one  congressional  district,  and  when  you  require  in  the  bill  five 
counties  you  cut  out  that  district. 

Mr.  PAGE.  It  is  not  supposed  that  the  city  of  New  York  has  any 
farms  within  its  limits,  and  therefore  it  will  not  be  included.  The 
provisions  of  the  bill  contemplate  that  the  agricultural  and  the  rural 
sections  shall  be  benefited  by  this  particular  provision.  Bear  in  mind 
that  the  important  cities  have  separate  schools,  and  we  give  to  the 
rural  districts  their  schools.  The  only  reason  why  we  say  there  shall 
be  five  counties  in  each  district  is  that  there  shall  not  be  a  multiplicity 
of  little  one-county  districts,  as  in  the  State  of  Wisconsin.  I  think 
the  Senator  from  Wisconsin  wall  bear  me  witness  that  they  have  there 
a  law  which  provides  for  a  one-county  school,  and  this  bill,  if  we  pass 
it,  will  meet  that  class  of  cases.  If  we  should  have  a  one-county 
school,  it  would  generally  be  so  cheap  a  school  that  it  would  hardly 
come  within  the  spirit  of  this  act. 

Mr.  JOHNSTON  of  Alabama.  The  Senator  does  not  yet  understand 
me.  One  county  in  my  State  has  a  population  of  235,000.  It  is 
largely  agricultural.  There  is  a  city  in  it,  of  course,  but  you  would 
deprive  that  district  from  having  any  school  at  all. 

Mr.  PAGE.  I  do  not  so  understand  it.  Take  the  city  to  which  you 
refer  and  take  four  other  counties  outside  of  that  county,  and  the 
five  together  will  have  one  of  these  schools,  and  it  will  be  a  fine  school. 
It  need  not  be  any  less  of  a  fine  school  because  it  is  near  a  city.  For 
instance,  what  is  your  largest  town — Birmingham  ? 

Mr.  JOHNSTON  of  Alabama.  Birmingham. 

Mr.  PAGE.  Birmingham  would  not  have  an  agricultural  school 
within  its  limits,  but  outside  of  Birmingham  you  would  arrange  a 
group  of  five  counties,  and  they  together  would  have  the  benefit  of 
this  act. 

Mr.  BACON.  The  word  "  district "  does  not  mean  a  congressional 
district? 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  21 

Mr.  PAGE.  Not  at  all,  because  if  we  had  it  by  congressional  districts 
we  would  work  out  a  very  impracticable  scheme.  The  city  of  New 
York  has  lots  of  congressional  districts.  We  do  not  design  or  expect 
that  New  York  will  have  any  of  these  schools  in  its  limits. 

Mr.  BACON.  We  have  in  my  State  schools  which  are  located  in 
congressional  districts.  We  have  these  agricultural  schools,  one  in 
each  congressional  district,  and  I  presume  that  would  not  interfere 
with  the  scheme  of  this  bill. 

Mr.  PAGE.  Not  at  all,  because  you  have  more  than  nine  congres- 
sional districts. 

Mr.  BACON.  We  have  12. 

Mr.  PAGE.  You  have  more  than  60  counties? 

Mr.  BACON.  Yes;  146. 

Mr.  PAGE.  Very  well.  If  you  had  60  counties  you  would  then  have 
one  for  each  congressional  district,  provided  you  saw  fit  to  make  a 
division  of  one  for  each  five  counties;  but,  having  more  than  that, 
it  is  perfectly  easy  to  arrange  it. 

Mr.  SMITH  of  Georgia.    Will  the  Senator  allow  me  ? 

Mr.  PAGE.  With  pleasure. 

Mr.  SMITH  of  Georgia.  While  our  schools  are  under  the  old  con- 
gressional district  plan  of  11,  so  far  the  policy  has  been  to  adhere 
to  those  old  lines  and  not  change  them  on  account  of  the  fact  that 
we  have  had  a  new  congressional  district  added,  but  even  if  that  were 
different  it  would  be  quite  easy,  I  think,  to  make  the  school  districts 
such  as  to  meet  a  compliance  with  the  bill  and  to  put  five  counties 
in  a  district. 

Mr.  PAGE.  I  want  to  say  the  State  of  Georgia  has  been  fully  con- 
sidered in  the  working  out  of  this  measure,  and,  unless  I  am  very 
much  mistaken,  there  is  no  reason  why  the  provisions  of  this  bill 
will  not  work  out  according  to  the  plan  now  existing  in  your  State. 
We  have  had  here  from  Georgia  some  very  strong  educators.  Dr. 
Soule,  of  Georgia,  was  here.  I  think  he  is  one  of  the  ablest  of  the 
educators  of  the  South. 

Mr.  SMITH  of  Georgia.  If  the  Senator  will  allow  me,  the  Senator 
might  change  that  from  "  the  South  "  to  "  the  United  States  or  of  any 
other  country." 

Mr.  PAGE.  I  accept  the  amendment.  I  think  well  of  the  Senator's 
suggestion. 

This  provision  is  designed  to  be  so  elastic  that  no  State  now  having 
agricultural  schools  will  have  difficulty  in  adjusting  these  schools  to 
the  provisions  of  the  bill,  and  yet  it  safeguards  the  measure  by  pro- 
viding against  the  creation  of  a  multiplicity  of  weak,  inefficient  one- 
county  schools,  rather  than  a  few  strong,  well-equipped  institutions 
which  shall  serve  practically  as  a  vocational  college  for  those  millions 
of  farmer  boys  who  will  find  a  high-school  course  fitted  to  their  needs 
while  the  higher  agricultural  colleges  organized  under  the  Morrill  Act 
will  attract  only  tens  of  thousands. 

This  section  also  provides  for  separate  agricultural  schools  for  the 
negro  race  and  prohibits  any  tuition  charges. 

Section  17  provides  that  no  State  shall  be  entitled  to  the  benefits 
of  the  branch-station  fund  until  by  legislative  authority  it  shall  have 
provided  for  a  branch  station  in  connection  with  district  agricultural 


22  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

high  schools,  receiving  funds  under  this  act,  and  shall  have  provided 
as  an  appropriatiton  for  the  annual  maintenance  of  such  branch  sta- 
tions a  sum  at  least  equal  to  that  allotted  annually  under  this  act. 
The  fund  is  safeguarded  by  the  following  clause : 

The  sum  paid  to  each  State  for  branch  stations  shall  be  applied  only  to  paying 
the  necessary  expenses  of  conducting,  by  such  branch  stations,  field  tests,  plant 
breeding,  and  other  scientific  work  bearing  directly  on  the  occupation  of  agri- 
culture. 

Section  18  provides  that  no  State  shall  be  entitled  to  any  part  of 
this  allotment  for  college-extension  work  until  by  legislative  enact- 
ment it  shall  provide  for  an  extension  department  in  its  State  college 
of  agriculture,  and  shall  have  provided  as  an  appropriation  for  that 
work  an  amount  at  least  equal  to  the  amount  annually  allotted  to  the 
State  from  the  Federal  Treasury. 

Section  19  is  one  of  the  most  important  of  those  sections  dealing 
with  the  administrative  features  of  the  bill,  because  it  places  in  the 
hands  of  the  State  board  of  vocational  education  created  by  the  State 
legislature  and  authorized  by  section  15  the  establishment  of  the  gen- 
eral plans  under  which  vocational  education  shall  be  worked  out  by 
the  respective  States.  In  other  words,  the  autonomy  of  the  States 
has  been  respected  to  the  fullest. 

It  is  true  that  the  bill  is  so  safeguarded  that  if  a  State  shall  not,  in 
good  faith,  observe  the  spirit  of  the  appropriation,  its  share  of  the 
appropriation  may  be  withheld  until  Congress,  by  express  act, 
authorizes  its  payment.  The  general  administrative  scheme,  or  plan, 
adopted  by  the  board  for  vocational  education  of  each  State  must 
have  the  approval  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  to  the  end  that  he 
may  see  that  the  spirit  and  purpose  of  the  appropriations  are  observed 
and  carried  out.  The  section  is  so  important  that  I  shall  read  it  in 
full: 

SEC.  19.  In  order  to  secure  the  benefit  of  the  secondary  school  department 
fund,  the  industrial  or  home  economics  school  fund,  the  district  agricultural 
school  fund,  the  college  teachers'  training  fund,  or  the  normal  teachers'  train- 
ing fund,  the  board  for  vocational  education  for  each  State  and  the  District  of 
Columbia  shall  adopt,  with  the  approval  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  and 
place  in  operation  a  general  administrative  scheme  or  plan,  with  such  modifi- 
cations as  may  be  made  from  time  to  time,  for  the  proper  distribution  of  moneys 
to  schools  of  secondary  grade  and  to  colleges  and  normal  schools  as  herein 
provided;  for  the  inspection  and  approval  of  such  schools  and  colleges  under 
the  provisions  of  this  act;  and  for  the  formulation  and  application  in  such 
inspection  and  approval  of  standards  and  requirements  in  vocational  education 
as  to  types  of  schools,  location,  course  of  study,  qualifications  of  teachers, 
methods  of  instruction,  conditions  of  admission,  and  employment  of  pupils.  In 
order  that  such  a  plan  may  be  adapted  to  the  needs  of  the  State  or  the  District 
of  Columbia  in  which  it  is  to  become  operative,  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior 
shall,  in  passing  upon  it,  and  its  modifications  from  time  to  time,  take  into  con- 
sideration the  social,  economic,  industrial,  educational,  and  administrative 
conditions,  and  all  other  relevant  circumstances  in  such  State  or  in  the  District 
of  Columbia.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  such  board  for  vocational  education  for 
any  State  or  the  District  of  Columbia  to  make  annually  to  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  a  full  and  detailed  report  of  its  administration  of  the  provisions  of 
this  act  relating  to  all  such  schools  of  secondary  grade  and  to  the  training  of 
teachers  in  colleges  and  normal  schools  as  herein  provided,  and  to  make  such 
additional  statements  and  reports  as  may  be  required  by  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  in  the  discharge  of  his  responsibility  under  this  act. 

Section  20  provides  that  the  board  of  trustees  having  charge  of 
the  State  college  of  agriculture  receiving  the  benefits  of  the  extension- 
work  fund  shall  do  so  under  general  plans  approved  by  the  Secre- 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  23 

tary  of  Agriculture,  and  shall  cooperate  with  him  in  the  develop- 
ment of  such  work,  and  shall  annually  make  to  him  full  and  detailed 
reports  of  its  operations,  receipts,  and  expenditures. 

Section  21  makes  it  the  duty  of  the  State  board  of  trustees  having 
charge  of  the  branch-station  fund  to  administer  the  fund  in  accord- 
ance with  provisions  or  general  plans  approved  by  the  Secretary  of 
Agriculture,  and  to  make  to  him  annually  a  full  detailed  report  of 
all  its  operations,  receipts,  and  expenditures. 

Section  22  provides  that  any  school  receiving  funds  under  this  act 
shall  conform  to  the  requirements  of  the  State  board  for  vocational 
education,  shall  cooperate  with  that  board  in  the  development  of  its 
work,  and  shall  make  to  that  board  a  full  and  detailed  report  of  its 
operations,  receipts,  and  expenditures. 

Section  23  provides  that  in  order  that  any  State  may  receive  the 
benefit  of  the  several  school  funds  provided  by  this  act  the  State 
custodian  of  those  funds  shall  annually  make  a  report  to  the  State 
board  for  vocational  education  of  his  administration  of  the  moneys 
received  by  him  for  those  funds;  and  in  order  that  the  State  may 
receive  the  benefit  of  the  extension-work  fund  and  branch-station 
fund,  he  shall  annually  make  a  report  to  the  Secretary  of  Agricul- 
ture of  his  administration  of  the  moneys  received  by  him  for  those 
funds. 

Section  24  provides  that  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  shall  annually 
ascertain  whether  the  several  funds  appropriated  by  this  act  for 
vocational  education  and  for  the  training  of  teachers  at  normal 
schools  have  been  expended  in  accordance  with  the  terms  of  this  act, 
and  shall  certify  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  as  to  each  State 
whether  it  has  complied  with  the  provisions  of  this  act  and  is  en- 
titled to  receive  its  share  of  such  funds. 

If  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  certifies  to  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  that  the  State  has  so  complied,  the  latter  official  is  directed 
to  pay  the  money  to  which  the  State  is  entitled  under  this  act  to  the 
State"  custodian  of  the  vocational-education  fund,  and  upon  the 
requisition  of  the  State  board  for  vocational  education  such  State 
custodian  shall  pay  to  the  governing  board  of  any  school  which 
should  receive  the  same  the  sum  to  which  it  is  entitled  under  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act. 

Section  25  charges  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture  with  the  duty  of 
ascertaining  whether  the  States  receiving  the  benefits  of  the  exten- 
sion-work fund  or  branch-station  fund  are  using  them  in  accordance 
with  the  terms  of  the  act.  If  he  finds  that  they  are,  he  shall  so  certify 
to  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  which  official  is  directed  to  pay  to 
the  State  custodian  for  vocational  education  the  sums  to  which  the 
State  is  entitled;  and  upon  requisition  of  the  board  of  trustees,  or 
board  of  control,  of  such  State  college  of  agriculture  or  State  experi- 
ment station,  such  State  custodian  shall  pay  to  the  treasurer  ap- 
pointed by  such  board  of  control  the  sum  which  the  said  college  is 
entitled  to  receive  under  the  provisions  of  this  act. 
%  Section  26  provides  that  the  "  secondary  school  department  fund  " 
shall  be  used  for  distinctive  studies  in,  or  closely  relating  to,  agri- 
culture, the  trades  and  industries,  and  home  economics. 

That  the  "  industrial  or  home  economics  school  fund "  shall  be 
used  only  for  distinctive  studies  in,  or  closely  relating  to,  the  trades, 
industries,  and  home  economics. 


24  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

That  the  "  district  agricultural  school  fund  "  shall  be  used  only  for 
distinctive  studies  in,  or  closely  relating  to,  agriculture  and  home 
economics. 

That  the  "  college  teachers'  training  fund "  shall  be  used  only  in 
the  preparation  of  teachers  to  give  practical  or  technical  instruction 
for  useful  service  in  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  or  the 
home. 

That  the  "  normal  teachers'  training  fund  "  shall  be  used  only  for 
distinctive  studies  designed  to  prepare  teachers  to  give  practical  or 
technical  instruction  fitting  for  useful  service  in  agriculture,  the 
trades  and  industries,  and  home  economics. 

That  the  "  extension-work  fund  "  shall  be  used  only  for  instruction 
and  demonstration  in  agriculture,  home  economics,  and  rural  affairs. 

And  that  the  "  branch-station  fund  "  shall  be  used  only  for  field 
tests,  plant  breeding,  animal  breeding,  home  economics,  and  other 
scientific  work,  under  plans  approved  by  the  directors  of  State  experi- 
ment stations  of  the  respective  States. 

Section  27  provides  that  if  any  part  of  any  fund  appropriated  by 
this  act  shall  be  lost  or  misapplied  it  shall  be  replaced ;  and  until  so 
replaced  no  subsequent  appropriation  for  such  purpose  shall  be  paid. 

One  of  the  best  provisions  in  the  entire  bill  is  that  which  provides 
that  the  funds  hereby  appropriated  may  not  be  invested  in  lands  or 
buildings.  This  provision  is  so  important  that  I  quote  it  in  full. 

Mr.  THORNTON.  What  section  is  that? 

Mr.  PAGE.  This  is  section  27 ;  it  is  the  last  part  of  the  section. 

*  *  *  No  portion  of  any  moneys  appropriated  under  this  act  for  the  bene- 
fit of  the  States  or  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be  applied,  directly  or  in- 
directly, to  the  purchase,  erection,  preservation,  or  repair  of  any  building  or 
buildings  or  equipment,  or  to  the  purchase  or  rental  of  lands;  and  no  portion 
of  such  moneys  shall  be  expended  other  than  in  institutions  supported  and  con- 
trolled by  the  public. 

That  last  line  is  very  important.  The  schools  must  be,  absolutely, 
public  schools  supported  and  controlled  by  the  public  and  with  public 
money. 

Section  28  provides  that  all  unexpended  sums  shall  be  deducted 
from  the  next  succeeding  annual  disbursement,  in  order  that  the 
amount  of  money  distributed  to  any  State  from  any  fund  provided 
for  in  this  act  shall  not  exceed  the  amount  actually  and  necessarily 
required  by  the  State  for  the  purpose  for  which  such  money  from 
such  fund  may  be  expended  under  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

Section  29  further  safeguards  the  appropriations  made  by  this  act 
by  providing  that  each  State  shall  receive  annually  only  such  portion 
of  any  fund  as,  in  the  judgment  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  or 
the  Secretary  of  Agriculture,  in  the  discharge  of  their  respective  re- 
sponsibilities, such  State  has  made  ample  preparation  to  use  to 
advantage. 

Section  30  provides  that  if  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  or  the 
Secretary  of  Agriculture  shall  withhold  a  certificate  for  the  whole 
or  any  part  of  the  allotment  to  any  State,  the  facts  and  reasons 
therefor  shall  be  reported  to  the  President,  in  order  that  the  State 
may,  if  it  so  desire,  appeal  to  Congress  from  the  determination  of 
the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  or  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture;  and 
if  the  next  Congress  shall  not  direct  that  such  sum  be  paid,  it  shall 
be  covered  into  the  Treasury. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  25 

Section  31  provides  that  the  moneys  distributed  to  institutions 
entitled  to  the  benefits  of  this  appropriation  shall  be  in  proportion 
to  the  amount  which  each  expends  out  of  other  income,  to  be  derived 
from  general  or  from  local  public  funds,  for  the  same  purpose,  dur- 
ing the  same  period.  There  is,  however,  an  alternative  clause  in 
this  section  which  provides  that  funds  may  be  distributed  upon  some 
other  basis,  according  to  plans  previously  adopted  by  the  board  for 
vocational  education,  or  by  legislative  authority  if  these  plans  have 
been  approved  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior. 

This  is  a  clause  which  I  should  like  to  have  Senators  especially 
consider,  because  it  is  a  very  important  one.  We  make  provision  that 
each  locality  shall  draw  according  to  the  amount  ife  contributes. 
There  is,  however,  an  alternative  clause  in  this  section  which  pro- 
vides that  funds  may  be  distributed  upon  some  other  basis,  accord- 
ing to  plans  previously  adopted  by  the  board  for  vocational  educa- 
tion, or  by  legislative  authority  if  those  plans  have  been  approved 
by  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior.  They  must  be  approved  by  the 
Secretary  of  the  Interior,  because  otherwise  funds  might  be  diverted 
from  the  purposes  contemplated  by  the  bill. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  this  bill  is  designed  to  stimulate  and 
encourage,  and  not  to  assume,  except  in  a  very  slight  degree,  the  main 
burdens  of  educational  support;  and  after  a  State  has  made  the 
proper  preparation  in  the  way  of  providing  the  required  buildings 
and  farm  lands  to  enable  it  to  take  advantage  of  the  act,  there  must 
then,  in  addition,  be  appropriated  at  least  twice  as  much  for  these 
educational  purposes  as  is  contributed  by  the  Federal  Government. 

I  regard  the  closing  portion  of  section  31  as  one  of  the  most  valu- 
able and  important  of  all  the  safeguarding  provisions  of  this  bill. 
I  quote  it  in  full : 

*  *  *  but  there  shall  in  no  case  be  disbursed  under  the  terms  of  this 
act  to  any  school  or  college  out  of  moneys  derived  from  the  secondary  school 
department  fund,  the  industrial  or  home  economics  school  fund,  the  district  agri- 
cultural school  fund,  the  college  teachers'  training  fund,  or  the  normal  teachers' 
training  fund,  as  provided  in  this  act,  more  money  than  fifty  per  centum  of  the 
amount  which  is  supplied  and  expended  during  the  same  period  for  the  same 
purpose,  for  which  such  fund  is  to  be  expended,  out  of  State  or  local  public 
moneys. 

Mr.  WILLIAMS.  k'  State  and  local "  or  "  State  or  local "? 

Mr.  PAGE.  Let  me  explain  to  the  Senator  how  it  is  hoped  the  scheme 
will  work  out,  and  I  will  illustrate  by  instancing  the  States  of 
Massachusetts  and  New  Jersey.  The  laws  of  those  States  provide 
that  when  any  local  community  shall  have  spent  a  certain  amount 
for  vocational  educational  training  the  State  shall  contribute  or  pay 
to  that  community  as  much  as  it  has  raised  locally.  We  hope  that 
to  the  amount  contributed  or  appropriated  by  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment the  State  will  add  an  equal  amount,  and  that  the  local  com- 
munity will  be  then  asked  to  raise  as  much  as  the  combined  contribu- 
tions of  the  State  and  the  Federal  Government.  This  will  assure 
good  schools. 

Mr.  WILLIAMS.  The  Senator  from  Vermont  does  not  understand 
what  I  am  getting  at.  Suppose  that  in  some  case  a  State  did  not 
appropriate  as  much  as  the  locality,  and  suppose  we  have  to  appro- 
priate $2,000  to  meet  $1,000  with  which  the  Federal  Government 
gives,  why  should  not  that  locality  have  the  benefit  of  the  bill?  In 


26  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

that  case  your  language  would  read  "  State  and  locality  "  or  "  State 
or  locality." 

Mr.  PAGE.  Mr.  President,  if  the  Senator  will  suggest  an  amendment 
to  the  section  which  says  "  as  much  as  is  raised  by  State  and  local  "  or 
"  by  State  or  local,"  1  see  no  objection  to  it,  but  I  should  dislike  to 
leave  out  the  words  "  State  and  local." 

Mr.  WILLIAMS.  Oh,  no.  I  did  not  suggest  that.  I  suggested  that 
the  language  should  be  "  State  and  local "  or  "  State  or  local,"  the 
idea  in  my  mind  being  this:  I  do  not  suppose  it  will  occur,  but  it 
might  happen,  that  some  State  might  fail  to  make  the  appropriation 
needed,  whereas  some  locality  within  the  State  would  show  the  ability 
and  the  willingness  to  meet  the  appropriation. 

Mr.  PAGE.  I  certainly  can  see  no  objection  to  that. 

Mr.  TOWNSEND.  May  I  make  a  suggestion  ?  Suppose  the  State  con- 
tributes nothing  and  the  locality  contributes  something,  the  contribu- 
tion then  would  be  simply  what  the  locality  had  contributed.  I  can 
not  quite  see  the  difference.  The  phrase  "  State  and  locality  "  com- 
bines both.  If  one  is  zero  and  the  other  is  something  else,  the  con- 
tribution is  still  the  sum  of  the  State  and  locality,  is  it  not? 

Mr.  WILLIAMS.  Yes;  but  still  upon  the  face  of  the  bill  it  would 
require  the  action  of  both  the  State  and  the  locality.  We  might  be 
turned  down  here  because  the  State  had  failed  to  act.  All  that  is 
sought  in  the  bill  is  that  they  shall  contribute  twice  as  much;  that 
twice  as  much  shall  come  in  for  the  purpose  as  comes  from  the  Federal 
Government,  making  the  total  money  coming  in  for  the  purpose  three 
times  what  the  Federal  Government  contributes.  So  it  struck  me 
that  perhaps  it  would  make  it  plainer  to  say  that,  because,  if  you  did, 
you  would  accomplish  your  purpose.  I  see  some  reason  on  the  other 
side  of  it.  The  two  together  might  contribute  more  than  they  other- 
wise would,  more  than  200  per  cent  of  what  they  are  giving  for  the 
scheme. 

I  hardly  think  that  what  I  had  in  mind  would  happen,  because  I 
imagine  that  every  State  would  do  something,  but  it  might  happen 
that  some  State  would  not.  Such  action  might  result  from  some 
technical  reason.  For  instance,  in  my  State  the  legislature  meets  but 
once  in  four  years,  and  therefore  might  not  be  able  to  meet  this 
appropriation  on  the  f>art  of  the  Federal  Government. 

Mr.  PAGE.  Mr.  President,  I  confess  that  the  idea  advanced  by  the 
junior  Senator  from  Michigan  [Mr.  Townsend]  was  one  which 
occurred  to  my  mind  when  I  drew  the  substitute,  but  I  can  see  no 
objection  to  amending  this  provision  by  writing  in  after  the  words 
"  State  and  local "  the  words  "  or  State  or  local."  I  should  like  to 
have  the  Senator  from  Mississippi  [Mr.  Williams]  think  the  matter 
over  during  the  day,  and  then,  if  he  would  like  to  propose  that  amend- 
ment I  now  see  no  reason  why  I  shall  not  accept  it  when  the  bill  is 
before  the  Senate  as  in  Committee  of  the  Whole. 

Mr.  WILLIAMS.  I  think  we  had  better  make  that  amendment  merely 
for  safety. 

Mr.  PAGE.  It  will  be  observed  that  the  Federal  Government  is  in  no 
case  to  pay  to  any  school  or  college  more  than  one-half  as  much  as  is 
raised  by  State  and  local  taxation. 

Let  me  illustrate  by  reference  to  a  single  appropriation :  Under 
this  bill  there  is  appropriated  to  State  normal  schools  and  other 
training  schools  for  the  education  of  teachers  for  this  work,  in  round 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  27 

numbers,  an  average  of  $21,000  for  each  State.  In  order  to  avail 
themselves  of  this  fund  there  must  be  raised  by  State  and  local  taxa- 
tion $42,000  more,  making  $63,000  the  average  sum  per  State  which 
must  be  expended  under  this  act  for  State  normal  and  other  training 
schools  in  educating  teachers  for  vocational  education  work. 

And  bear  in  mind,  further,  that  under  the  provisions  of  section  26 
of  the  act  the  normal  teachers'  training  fund  can  be  used  only  for 
distinctive  studies,  which  are  given  in  separate  units,  organized  as 
departments  or  divisions  of  State  normal  schools  or  other  training 
schools,  under  a  properly  qualified  head,  and  which  are  designed  to 
prepare  teachers  to  give  practical  or  technical  instruction  fitting  for 
useful  service  in  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  or  home 
economics. 

Observe  that  this  Federal  fund  may  not  be  used  for  the  instruction 
of  those  who  are  to  teach  the  ordinary,  or  cultural,  studies,  but  must 
be  used  solely  to  educate  those  who  are  to  teach  the  vocational  sub- 
jects contemplated  by  this  bill.  It  may  be  suggested  that  no  State 
is  obliged  to  accept  all  the  provisions  of  this  bill,  but  I  have  little 
doubt  that  all  of  them  will ;  and  the  wonderful  impetus  that  will  be 
given  to  the  cause  of  industrial  education  by  this  act  within  the  next 
five  years  can  hardly  be  overestimated. 

Section  32  throws  around  this  appropriation  another  most  excel- 
lent safeguard.  I  quote  the  section  in  full : 

All  States,  Territories,  and  the  District  of  Columbia  accepting  the  benefit  of 
any  fund  under  this  act  shall  provide  other  moneys  with  which  to  pay  the  cost 
of  providing  the  necessary  lands  and  buildings,  and  to  pay  the  entire  cost  of  all 
instruction,  supplementary  to  the  practical  and  technical  instruction  provided 
for  in  this  act,  necessary  in  order  to  complete  well-rounded  courses  of  training, 
the  main  purposes  of  which  are  to  give  vocational  as  well  as  general  preparation 
for  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  and  home  making,  or  to  prepare 
teachers  for  these  vocations,  suited  to  the  needs  of  the  respective  sections  and 
communities  of  the  United  States. 

Mr.  WILLIAMS.  Will  the  Senator  read  that  over  again? 

Mr.  PAGE.  Before  I  read  it,  let  me  say  to  the  Senator  that  we  are 
very  jealous  lest  the  States  shall  utilize  these  funds  to  pay  for  teach- 
ing the  ordinary  cultural  studies.  So  the  bill  provides : 

SEC.  32.  That  all  States,  Territories,  and  the  District  of  Columbia  accepting 
the  benefit  of  any  fund  under  this  act  shall  provide  other  moneys  with  which  to 
pay  the  cost  of  providing  the  necessary  lands  and  buildings,  and  to  pay  the 
entire  cost  of  all  instruction,  supplementary  to  the  practical  and  technical  in- 
struction provided  for  in  this  act,  necessary  in  order  to  complete  well-rounded 
courses  of  training,  the  main  purposes  of  which  are  to  give  vocational  as  well 
as  general  preparation  for  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  and  home 
making,  or  to  prepare  teachers  for  these  vocations,  suited  to  the  needs  of  the 
respective  sections  and  communities  of  the  United  States. 

Mr.  GALLINGER.  Mr.  President,  I  want  to  express  my  gratification 
that  in  drafting  this  bill  the  Senator  from  Vermont  has  not  omitted 
the  District  of  Columbia.  There  is  an  anomalous  condition  existing 
here  under  the  Morrill  Act  and  supplemental  acts,  inasmuch  as  Porto 
Rico,  Hawaii,  and  the  Territories,  when  we  had  them,  are  all  in- 
cluded in  the  terms  of  that  act,  while  the  District  of  Columbia  is 
excluded,  or  was  not  mentioned.  For  several  years  I  have  made  an 
effort  to  get  recognition,  so  that  the  District  of  Columbia  might  have 
its  quota  of  those  funds  for  the  purpose  of  teaching  agriculture  and 
related  matters  in  one  of  our  institutions  of  learning  here,  but  I  have 
failed  to  accomplish  that  result  up  to  the  present  time.  I  am  glad, 


28  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

however,  that  the  Senator  has  not  forgotten  that  the  National  Capital 
is  a  place  where  instruction  may  well  be  given  in  those  subjects  as 
well  as  in  ordinary  subjects  pertaining  to  university  education. 

I  simply  wanted  to  emphasize  that  point,  and  it  may  help  me  possi- 
bly in  the  future,  if  I  live  long  enough,  to  make  anotner  effort  to  get 
recognition  of  the  District  of  Columbia  under  the  existing  law. 

Mr.  PAGE.  Mr.  President,  I  only  hope  I  shall  find  that  the  Senator 
will  discover  enough  good  things  in  this  bill  so  that  he  will  support 
it  before  he  gets  through. 

I  want  to  say,  however,  in  this  connection,  that  the  District  of  Co- 
lumbia does  not  participate  in  all  the  funds.  It  participates  in  most 
of  the  school  funds,  but  not  in  the  funds  that  provide  for  district 
agricultural  schools,  because  those  are  purely  agricultural,  and  we 
did  not  think  it  best  to  have  the  District  of  Columbia  included.  Let 
me  say  in  this  connection  that  our  Commissioner  of  Education,  Dr. 
Claxton,  has  just  returned  from  Porto  Rico.  He  came  to  see  me  yes- 
terday or  the  day  before.  He  said,  "  Senator,  I  really  believe  that 
the  United  States  would  only  do  the  proper  and  just  thing  to  include 
Porto  Rico  in  the  provisions  of  your  bill."  I  said,  "  Perhaps  later 
we  will  include  Porto  Rico,  but  I  do  not  know  but  it  might  imperil 
the  passage  of  the  bill  to  do  it  now,  and  I  prefer  to  -wait  a  while  and 
see.  I  personally  should  have  no  objection  to  putting  in  Porto  Rico 
if  it  was  thought  best  to  do  so." 

It  should  be  noted  that  these  funds  can  not  be  diverted  from  the 
purposes  intended  by  the  act,  and  that  in  order  to  receive  the  benefits 
of  this  fund  the  States  must  pay  the  cost  not  only  of  providing  the 
land  and  buildings,  but  also  the  entire  cost  of  such  general  instruction 
as  is  necessary  to  complete  well-rounded  ^courses  of  training,  the  main 
purposes  of  which  are  to  give  vocational  training. 

Section  33  provides  that  correspondence  for  the  furtherance  of  ex- 
tension work,  as  provided  for  in  this  act,  shall  be  transmitted  in  the 
mails  free  of  postage  under  such  regulations  as  the  Postmaster  Gen- 
eral may  from  time  to  time  prescribe. 

Section  34  provides  that  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  shall  make 
one  or  more  reports  to  Congress  annually  of  his  administration  of 
the  several  funds  paid  out  under  his  supervision. 

Section  35  provides  that  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture  shall  make 
an  annual  report  to  Congress  of  his  administration  of  the  funds  which 
come  under  his  supervision. 

Section  36  provides  that  this  act  shall  take  effect  upon  its  passage. 

Mr.  President,  it  may  seem  to  Senators,  from  a  casual  examination, 
that  this  bill  is  unnecessarily  long  and  seemingly  complex ;  but  I  can 
assure  the  Senate  that  a  careful  analysis  of  the  bill  will  show  that 
while  it  is  drawn  upon  a  broad  and  comprehensive  plan,  its  details 
have  been  wrought  out  with  painstaking  care  and  are  based  upon 
well-established  precedents — precedents  which  have  been  successfully 
worked  out  in  the  field  of  experience. 

Its  provisions  are  admirably  designed  to  simplify  and  unify  one  of 
our  most  comprehensive  and  complex  public  enterprises — our  public- 
school  system.  For  Congress  to  now  stop  short  of  the  passage  of  a 
comprehensive  measure  which  will  so  supplement  the  great  Morrill 
land-grant  college  act  of  1862  as  to  carry  the  new  scientific  practice  of 
all  the  industries  to  all  the  people  would  be  an  admission  that  we  are 
unable  properly  to  utilize  the  experience  of  half  a  century  of  effort  by 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  29 

these  State  colleges.  The  very  details  of  this  measure  will  help  to  so 
frame  up  our  public-school  organization  that  its  government  will  be 
simplified.  This  measure  by  comprehending  the  entire  field  will 
greatly  simplify,  where,  in  the  absence  of  such  a  law,  complexity  is 
constantly  arising.  In  trades  schools,  for  example,  this  bill  has 
already  brought  unity  of  thought  and  action  on  the  part  of  organized 
labor  and  organized  employers. 

This  is  a  matter  to  which  I  hope  Senators  will  give  careful  atten- 
tion. We  have  brought  together  the  Federation  of  Labor  and  the 
American  Association  of  Manufacturers,  which  have  been  so  bitter 
toward  each  other  that  they  would  'not  meet  together  in  the  same 
room  to  consider  any  proposition — we  have  brought  them  together 
on  this-great  question,  and  they  have  reached  a  conclusion  in  abso- 
lutely hearty  accord. 

The  best  educators  in  the  country  have  given  to  the  preparation  of 
this  bill,  without  money  and  without  price,  a  vast  amount  of  pains- 
taking labor.  The  national  leaders  in  these  two  fields  have  been  here 
brought  together  in  a  most  marvelous  unity  for  trades-school  educa- 
tion as  a  part  of  our  public-school  system,  rather  than  in  privately 
managed  trades  schools,  which  have  proven  a  partial  menace  to  the 
peaceful  settlement  of  labor  disputes.  The  Society  for  the  Promotion 
of  Industrial  Education  has  sent  to  me  at  their  own  expense  their 
executive  secretary,  Mr.  C.  A.  Prosser,  a  man  of  large  experience,  and 
of  excellent  ability — I  want  to  say  that  I  can  not  speak  too  highly  of 
him — and  it  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that  he  has  spent  several  solid 
weeks  in  helping  to  work  out  the  details  of  this  bill.  The  Commis- 
sioner of  Education,  Dr.  P.  P.  Claxton,  a  man  of  extensive  experience 
in  educational  matters,  has  joined  with  me  in  a  painstaking  revision 
of  every  section  of  the  original  bill,  and  it  is  to  these  and  other  edu- 
cators, many  of  whom  I  ought,  perhaps,  in  justice,  to  mention,  that  the 
credit  is  due  for  the  production  of  what  educators  almost  everywhere 
now  confess  to  be  a  reasonably  perfect  and  practical  measure.  I  have 
simply  brought  together  as  best  I  might  the  results  of  other  men's 
labors.  I  can  only  claim  myself  that  I  have  been  diligent  and  in- 
dustrious; and  that,  so  far  as  I  know,  I  have  not  from  the  first 
surrendered  any  vital  principle  of  the  bill  or  sacrificed  any  of  its 
fundamentals. 

Mr.  President,  perhaps  I  may  be  pardoned  for  saying  that  the  bill 
does  not  consist  of  a  mass  of  inchoate  facts  and  propositions.  It  is 
rather  the  result  of  hard  months  of  painstaking  labor.  It  is  the 
bringing  together  of  the  views  of  different  educators  from  almost 
every  State  in  the  Union,  and  by  the  adjustment  of  those  views  in 
such  a  way  that  the  bill  in  its  entirety  shall  not  only  be  one  worthy 
of  adoption  on  the  part  of  this  Senate,  but  one  the  provisions  of 
which  so  articulate  with  the  school  laws  of  the  several  States  as  to 
make  it  a  practical,  workable  whole.  The  more  Senators  will  study 
it  the  more  they  will  see  therein  a  growth,  an  evolution,  so  to  speak, 
with  every  important  point  in  that  evolution  so  hedged  about  and 
safeguarded  as  to  prevent  waste  and  to  make  it  impossible  to  divert 
the  funds  appropriated  by  the  bill  from  the  purposes  they  were 
intended  to  subserve  and  promote. 

Perhaps  in  passing  I  ought  to  mention  the  fact  that  some  Senators 
believe  that  it  would  be  wise  to  make  a  compromise  by  eliminating 


30  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

some  of  the  provisions  of  the  bill  and  enacting  the  balance  into  law, 
so  as  to  lessen  the  total  sum  of  money  required. 

I  believe  that  every  feature  of  this  bill  is  good.  I  am  also  firmly 
of  the  opinion  that,  in  view  of  the  appropriation  of  more  than 
$17,000,000  for  agriculture  in  the  bill  recently  pafesed  for  the  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture,  we  should  now  take  care  of  the  sons  of  the 
laboring  men — those  who  work  in  the  mines  and  quarries,  the  fac- 
tories, and  the  workshops. 

So  far  as'  I  am  personally  concerned,  while  I  yield  to  no  man  in 
my  desire  to  promote  the  welfare  of  the  American  farmer,  I  believe 
I  should  be  guilty  of  great  dereliction  of  duty  were  I  to  consent  to 
the  dismemberment  of  this  bill  in  such  a  way  as  to  eliminate  from 
its  benefits  and  its  bounties  the  American  boy  and  girl. 

Mr.  President,  I  do  not  believe  that  this  great,  broad,  generous 
proposition — which  involves  the  betterment  and  the  uplift  of  the  sons 
and  daughters  of  the  men  of  our  Nation  who  toil — can  be  stopped  any 
more  than  we  can  dam  the  waters  of  the  Niagara.  We  may  cry 
"  Expense !  "  "  Cost !  "  "  Unconstitutionally !  "  and  by  so  doing  delay 
the  passage  of  the  bill,  but,  like  Banquo's  ghost,  it  will  not  down ; 
and  I,  for  one,  will  never  take  counsel  of  my  fears  on  a  measure  which 
I  believe  to  be  so  everlastingly  right. 

The  fight  is  going  on  until  success  will  crown  the  efforts  of  some 
one,  if  not  myself,  in  ordPer  that  the  great  wrong  to  the  chief  asset 
of  this  country — the  American  boy — may  be  righted,  and  the  Amer- 
ican people  thereby  started  upward  on  a  broader,  better  educational 
highway. 

Congress  must  again  blaze  an  educational  trail  along  the  lines  of 
the  industries,  agriculture,  and  home  economics — a  trail  which  every 
State  in  this  Union  will,  in  my  opinion,  promptly  follow,  to  the  honor 
and  glory  of  this  great  Nation. 

The  bill  makes  large  appropriations,  aggregating,  in  round  num- 
bers, $12,000,000,  aside  from  the  education  of  teachers  and  branch- 
station  work.  Of  this  sum  $3,000,000  is  for  what  is  known  as  agri- 
cultural extension  work;  $3,000,000  for  State  district  agricultural 
schools;  $3,000,000  for  the  purpose  of  teaching  agriculture,  the  trades 
and  industries,  and  home  economics  in  our  general  public  secondary 
schools;  and  $3,000,000  for  separate  industrial  schools  in  cities. 

It  will  be  observed  that  of  this  $12,000,000,  $6.000,000  is  for  dis- 
tinctively agricultural  purposes,  while  $3,000,000  is  for  schools  where 
the  trades  and  industries,  agriculture,  and  home  economics  are  taught, 
and  $3,000,000  for  schools  where  the  trades  and  industries  and  home 
economics  are  taught.  I  purpose,  first,  to  discuss  this  bill  from  the 
standpoint  of  agriculture. 

AGRICULTURE. 

There  is  no  more  serious  problem  before  the  American  people 
to-day  than  that  of  maintaining  the  equilibrium  of  population  be- 
tween rural  and  urban  life,  involving  as  it  does  that  other  twin  prob- 
lem— the  maintenance  of  the  equilibrium  between  food  production 
and  food  consumption. 

At  a  hearing  held  before  the  Committee  on  Agriculture  and  Fores- 
try in  March  last,  there  appeared  before  us  the  representatives  of  an 
association  of  bankers,  and  I  was  much  impressed  with  the  statement 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  31 

of  Mr.  Joseph  Chapman,  jr.,  chairman  of  the  committee  of  North- 
western State  Agricultural  Colleges,  and  chairman  of  the  American 
Bankers'  committee.    He  said  that  they  began  some  five  years  ago  to 
study  this  great  question  from  an  economic  standpoint. 
I  quote  from  his  statement: 

We  found  our  boys  and  girls  were  leaving  the  farms  and  going  to  the  cities. 
In  Minnesota  one-third  of  the  population  of  that  State  lived  in  three  cities. 
We  went  about  to  find  out  the  reasons  why  the  boys  and  girls  were  leaving 
the  farms  and  flocking  to  the  cities,  leaving  our  men  and  their  wives,  who  ran 
the  farms,  without  help,  or  with  very  incompetent  hired  help.  It  was  a  dis- 
couraging situation.  At  the  Hull  House,  in  Chicago,  last  June  a  man  made  a 
canvass  of  the  chief  lodging  houses  in  that  city  and  found  that  there  were 
20,000  young  men  under  the  age  of  25  who  were  sleeping  in  basements  where 
the  water  would  ooze  up  through  the  floors  and  where  they  would  lie  down  to 
sleep  with  nothing  but  a  newspaper  between  them  and  the  floor.  Those  young 
men  were  from  the  farms  of  our  Central  States — men  looking  for  jobs  in  cities. 
We  reached  the  conclusion  that  it  was  largely  an  educational  problem.  We 
found  in  Minnesota  that  in  1909  there  were  435,000  children  of  all  ages  in  our 
schools,  which  schools  were  conducted  at  an  expense  of  about  $14,000,000  to  the 
State.  Of  that  435,000,  Mr.  Chairman,  1,832  were  in  our  agricultural  schools 
and  colleges.  In  other  words,  Minnesota  was  educating  99.6  per  cent  of  the  com- 
ing generation  to  be  consumers  and  four-tenths  of  1  per  cent  to  be  producers, 
and  if  you  think  those  figures  are  exaggerated  and  do  not  fit  in  there,  look 
into  the  situation  in  your  own  State  and  you  will  find  Minnesota  is  not  alone. 

We  have  drifted  away  from  practical  education  and  have  gotten  largely  into 
theoretical  and  what  is  called  intellectual  education,  so  that  the  problem  in 
Minnesota  is  now  to  get  the  knowledge  from  the  agricultural  schools  in  our 
great  States  out  to  the  1,000.000  people  who  live  on  the  farms  in  the  State  of 
Minnesota.  There  are  $400,000,000  worth  of  products  produced  annually  by 
these  million  people  living  on  the  farms,  and  yet  Minnesota  practically  stood 
still  in  her  rural  population  in  the  last  10  years,  while  the  great  States  of  Iowa 
and  Missouri  dropped  backward. 

But,  gentlemen,  it  is  going  to  take  a  very  long  time  before  this  information 
is  going  to  percolate  and  get  to  the  people  under  our  present  methods.  In  our 
own  school  system  in  the  State  of  Minnesota  we  have  changed  in  the  last  three 
years.  There  are  now  in  Minnesota  80  high  schools  where  agriculture,  domes- 
tic science,  and  vocational  training  are  taught,  and  the  reason  there  are  not 
more  is  because  we  can  not  get  the  instructors. 

Mr.  President,  the  social  life  of  the  city  offers  advantages  which 
the  boys  and  girls  are  unable  to  find  in  rural  life ;  but,  more  than  all 
this,  the  energetic,  active,  enterprising  farmer's  boy  looks  forward 
to  the  future  and  asks:  If  I  am. faithful,  if  I  am  enterprising  and  in- 
dustrious— in  other  words,  if  I  make  good — what  is  there  in  the 
future  for  me?  Under  conditions  as  they  now  exist  he  is  led  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  possibilities  of  success  are  greater  in  the  city  than 
in  the  country.  As  Banker  Chapman  well  said  in  his  remarks  before 
our  committee: 

For  a  hundred  years  in  this  country  we  have  been  taking  the  boys  and  girls 
away  from  the  farm  and  sending  them  into  the  cities,  and  it  is  going  to  be  a 
hard  siege  before  we  can  get  conditions  in  the  country  so  that  a  man  will  be 
satisfied  to  live  there.  Fifteen  or  twenty-five  years  ago  it  used  to  be  the  prac- 
tice for  one  or  two  boys  or  one  or  two  girls  from  a  large  family  to  go  to  the 
city.  Now  the  farmer  sells  the  farm  and  the  whole  family  moves  there,  and 
he  is  oftentimes  the  best  farmer  in  the  community. 

Mr.  President,  we  all  know  how  natural  it  is  for  the  more  enter- 
prising of  our  boys  and  girls  to  seek  occupations  which  they  regard 
as  more  genteel — positions  in  the  store  and  the  office.  There  is  an 
unnatural  glamour  accompanying  the  securing  of  a  situation  behind 
a  counter  that  does  not  exist  in  a  job  on  the  farm  where  the  boy  fol- 
lows the  plow  and  milks  the  cows. 


32  VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION. 

Up  to  within  a  few  years  the  enterprising  son  of  the  farmer  of  the 
East  could  see  a  competence  in  going  to  the  West  and  taking  up  a 
homestead.  To-day  he  knows  that  practically  all  the  good  lands  of 
the  country  which  could  be  taken  under  the  homestead  laws  are 
exhausted. 

Mr.  President,  I  might  elaborate  upon  ftds  feature  of  the  argument 
indefinitely,  but  I  think  it  is  unnecessary.  Unpalatable  as  it  is,  the 
fact  confronts  us  that  something  must  be  done  to  change  this  con- 
stant drainage  from  country  to  city — the  depopulation  of  much  of 
the  best  blood  of  our  rural  communties — or  within  10  years,  perhaps 
within  five,  we  shall  not  only  cease  to  be  a  food-exporting  Nation, 
but  shall  actually  be  importing  our  cereals. 

Mr.  President,  am  I  wrong  in  supposing  that  the  productivity  of 
our  farm  lands  is  an  important  economic  condition  which  we  should, 
as  a  Nation,  seek  to  remedy?  If  a  remedy  can  be  found  for  the 
high  prices  of  foods,  should  it  not  be  applied,  if  the  expense  to  the 
Federal  Government  is  only  commensurate  and  proper  in  view  of  the 
end  to  be  obtained  ?  Is  the  expense  of  1 J  cents  per  month  per  capita 
of  our  population  more  than  the  exigencies  of  the  situation  warrant  ? 
I  think  not.  I  say  1J  cents  per  month.  Let  me  interject  here  that  if 
this  bill  in  1921  reaches  its  maximum,  the  entire  cost  to  the  American 
people  will  be  less  than  1J  cents  per  capita  per  month. 

It  seems  to  me  that  the  great  question  before  the  country  now  is: 
Can  these  conditions  be  changed;  and  if  so,  how?  I  feel  that  they 
can  be,  and  that  this  bill  suggests  the  way,  namely,  by  bringing  about 
more  profitable  and  better  farming. 

One  of  the  methods  for  reaching  this  end  is  provided  by  section 
7  of  this  bill,  which  appropriates  for  agricultural  extension  work. 
This  means  that  actual  demonstrations  will  be  taken  to  the  farmer 
on  his  own  farm,  or  on  some  farm  in  his  vicinity,  the  results  of  the 
research  work  which  have  been  accumulating  through  the  agency 
of  the  experiment  stations  connected  with  the  different  State  agri- 
cultural colleges  and  of  departments  of  agriculture  for  the  past  50 
years. 

We  recently  had  before  our  Committee  on  Agriculture  and  For- 
estry some  very  interesting  hearings  with  reference  to  this  agricul- 
tural extension  work. 

Among  those  who  appeared  before  us  was  Dr.  W.  O.  Thompson, 
president  of  the  Ohio  State  University;  Dr.  H.  L.  Russell,  dean  of 
the  college  of  agriculture  of  the  University  of  Wisconsin ;  Dr.  T.  C. 
Atkeson,  professor  of  animal  husbandry  of  the  University  of  West 
Virginia;  Dr.  W.  D.  Gibbs,  president  of  the  New  Hampshire  College 
of  Agriculture;  Dr.  Howard  Edwards,  president  of  the  Rhode 
Island  State  College;  Dr.  Andrew  M.  Soule,  president  of  the  State 
College  of  Agriculture  of  Georgia,  and  a  number  of  other  leading 
educators  connected  with  agricultural  work. 

I  was  particularly  interested  in  the  statement  of  Dr.  Soule,  because 
there  is  probably  no  educator  better  known  in  the  South  than  he. 
He  impressed  me  as  a  man  of  ability,  and  as  one  who  is  not  only 
aggressive,  but  progressive  in  all  that  pertains  to  the  educational 
welfare  of  our  country.  Coming  as  he  does  from  the  great  Empire 
State  of  the  South,  perhaps  the  most  progressive  of  any  of  the 
Southern  States  in  matters  of  agricultural  education,  his  views  are 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  33 

especially  important.  They  are  so  thoroughly  practical  that  I  be- 
lieve that  Senators  may  profitably  give  to  them  something  more 
than  casual  consideration.  I  shall  not  give  them  in  full,  but,  rather, 
quote  the  more  important  of  his  remarks  before  our  committee.  He 
said: 

This  problem  is  of  so  great  magnitude  that  it  is  almost  impossible  to  know 
where  to  begin  an  adequate  discussion  of  it  within  the  very  limited  time  at 
one's  disposal.  I  judge  from  the  tenor  of  the  questions  asked  here  that  possibly 
this  distinguished  body  of  men  do  not  quite  grasp  the  gravity  of  the  situation 
in  American  agriculture  at  the  present  time.  The  use  of  fertilizers  commenced 
In  the  South,  roughly  speaking,  shortly  prior  to  the  war  between  the  States. 
Last  year  something  like  5,000,000  tons  were  used,  of  which  more  than  1,300,000 
tons  were  applied  in  the  State  of  Georgia,  which  I  happen  to  represent  on  this 
occasion.  That  means  a  tax  on  the  production  of  our  State  of  approximately 
$25,000,000. 

Last  year  we  successfully  increased  the  yield  of  cotton  because  of  the  benefi- 
cent information  emanating  from  the  extension  work  which  we  are  endeavoring 
to  do.  But  if  you  take  the  history  of  the  application  of  commercial  fertilizers 
for  the  last  50  or  60  years,  you  will  find  the  production  of  lint  cotton  per  acre 
stands  almost  still.  It  is  quite  evident,  therefore,  that  we  face  a  crisis  in 
southern  agriculture.  It  is  true  commercial  fertilizers  are  necessary  on  our 
soils  under  existing  conditions.  It  is  also  true  that  we  are  now  reaching  a 
point  where  a  different  system  of  agriculture  must  be  instituted  or  fertilizers 
will  fail  to  give  a  responsive  profit  on  our  land.  What  must  we  do?  Can  we 
afford  to  sit  still  when  there  hangs  in  the  balance  an  export  crop  or  a  crop 
which,  exported,  brings  a  balance  of  trade  to  our  credit  of  nearly  $700,000,000? 
Can  we  afford  to  see  the  price  of  lint  cotton  become  prohibitive? 

I  say,  Mr.  Chairman,  this  is  not  a  local  question;  it  is  a  national  question; 
and  the  people  of  Massachusetts  and  the  people  of  California  are  just  as  much 
interested  and  concerned  in  this  problem  as  the  people  of  Georgia.  Can  we 
remedy  such  a  condition;  is  it  possible?  I  will  be  specific  for  your  information 
along  this  line.  Five  years  ago  we  took  in  our  demonstration  a  field — and  it 
has  been  representative  of  land  in  many  other  points  in  the  State — which  with- 
out fertilizer  produced  a  third  of  a  bale  per  acre.  Last  year  it  produced  3  bales 
of  cotton  per  acre.  How  was  this  extraordinary  result  brought  about?  The 
land  was  simply  deeply  broken;  then  it  was  properly  cultivated;  and  a  crop 
of  cowpeas,  gathering  nitrogen  out  of  the  air,  was  turned  under;  a  light  appli- 
cation of  cow  manure  and  a  thousand  pounds  of  what  we  call  three-four 
fertilizer  was  applied  to  the  soil. 

I  have  not  figured  put  the  percentage  of  the  increase,  but  I  leave  you  to 
judge  of  putting  principles  of  this  kind  within  the  reach  of  the  cotton  farmer 
who  to-day  is  using  an  inadequate  kind  of  fertilizer  and  who  is  harvesting  a 
third  of  a  bale  to  an  acre.  You  may  ask  me,  May  this  be  duplicated  on  the 
average  farm,  and  was  this  done  at  a  profit?  It  was  done  at  a  profit  of  $150 
to  the  acre,  and  it  has  been  duplicated  on  many  farms  in  Georgia,  and  it  is  a 
matter  of  opportunity  through  extension  teaching  to  have  it  duplicated  on 
thousands  of  other  farms.  This  one  illustration  must  serve  to  show  you  the 
gravity  of  the  situation  which  confronts  us  and  to  let  you  see  that  production 
in  this  country  is  not  maintaining  its  increased  yield  from  the  consuming 
power  of  the  Nation,  and  that  applies,  Mr.  Chairman,  not  only  to  raw  materials, 
which  are  the  basis  of  our  manufactures,  but  to  food  materials  as  well.  This 
point  I  desire  to  make  clear :  Agricultural  science  is  far  in  advance  of  agricul- 
tural practice.  *  *  * 

Now,  we  may  write  bulletins,  Mr.  Chairman,  indefinitely.  They  are  good; 
there  is  a  percentage  of  American  farmers  who  read  them,  but  it  is  a  limited 
per  cent.  We  are  not  trying  to  help  that  man.  I  would  not  have  the  transcript 
show  that  I  was  indifferent  to  that  man,  for  we  want  to  serve  him;  we  must 
help  him  because  he  is  a  leader ;  but  we  must  also  reach  the  ninety  and  nine  who 
are  not  in  position  to  help  themselves  and  whose  opportunities  may  not  have 
been  such  as  to  enable  them  to  take  the  bulletin  and  use  it. 

We  have  15  men  in  our  extension  department  who  have  been  termed  "  agri- 
cultural drummers."  These  men  go  out,  for  instance,  to  Mr.  Smith's  place,  and 
Mr.  Smith  has  been  trying,  possibly,  to  raise  a  bale  of  cotton  per  acre,  but  he 
has  failed. 

49159— S.  Doc.  845,  62—2 3 


84  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

Our  man  comes  along  and  diagnoses  his  soil  and  tells  him  a  method  of  prepa- 
ration. He  tells  him  what  type  of  seed  to  select  which  will  be  resistant  to  this 
disease  or  that  disease,  and  he  grows  that  cotton  and  raises  a  bale  per  acre, 
and  he  thus  has  the  stimulus  and  the  scientific  proof  brought  to  his  very  door. 
Mr.  Chairman,  you  have  made  a  new  citizen  of  that  man;  you  have  changed 
his  outlook  on  life;  you  have  given  him  a  broad  horizon;  you  have  made  him 
proud  that  he  is  a  citizen  of  the  United  States;  and  you  have  endowed  him 
with  power.  Can  you  afford  and  can  we  afford  to  neglect  these  millions  of 
men  who  are  not  doing  for  this  Nation,  for  themselves,  and  for  their  families 
what  they  ought  to  do  because  we  have  accumulated  knowledge  and  lock  it  up 
and  say  you  shall  not  have  it? 

I  want  to  speak  of  several  other  things  briefly,  and  one  is  about  the  boys 
and  girls  who  work  in  my  State.  I  do  not  want  to  repeat  what  these  other 
gentlemen  have  said,  but  I  want  to  tell  you  what  the  extension  work  is  doing 
for  those  boys  and  girls.  I  would  like  to  say  for  the  information  of  the  Sena- 
tors here  that  Georgia  is  doing  her  share  in  extension  work.  Our  State  is 
Appropriating  something  like  $45,000  every  year  to  this  work,  and  there  is 
being  subscribed  in  Georgia,  through  chambers  of  commerce,  through  boards  of 
education,  and  through  individual  citizens,  nearly  $16,000  this  year.  Now, 
what  about  our  boys'  work?  For  a  long  time  the  yield  of  corn  in  Georgia  stood 
at  12  bushels  to  the  acre.  Year  before  last  it  went  up  2  bushels,  and  last  year 
it  went  up  nearly  2  bushels  more. 

Several  years  ago  Georgia  was  raising  about  42,000,000  bushels  of  corn.  Last 
year  it  jumped  to  73,000,000  bushels.  Last  year,  when  every  Southern  State — 
please  examine  the  statistics  for  yourself — fell  off  on  account  of  the  unprec- 
edented drought,  Georgia  showed  an  increase  of  nearly  2  bushels  to  the  acre, 
and  between  nine  and  ten  million  bushels  increase  for  the  State.  *  *  * 

In  the  seventh  congressional  district  of  Georgia  last  year  some  1,200  boys 
grew  corn  under  advice  and  direction.  They  had  to  submit  an  elaborate  report 
that  was  testified  to  by  their  county  school  commissioners  and  by  other  authori- 
ties in  that  county.  Those  1,200  boys  increased  the  yield  of  corn  on  their  plats 
of  land  over  the  average  land  of  the  State  of  Georgia  last  year  to  a  value  of 
$50,000.  . 

These  things  can  not  be  gainsaid,  because  they  are  facts.  They  show  the 
power  of  bringing  this  truth  to  the  youth  on  the  farm  who  has  not  had  an 
opportunity,  who  has  believed  his  father  a  failure,  who  has  believed  agriculture 
a  failure,  and  who  has  crowded  into  the  city  as  a  result. 

If  we  are  to  do  something  to  bind  our  people  to  the  soil,  and  especially  the 
rising  generation,  we  must  show  them  the  power  of  development  of  the  soil  as 
applied  to  making  agriculture  a  profitable  industry.  I  can  only,  of  course, 
touch  on  some  of  these  few  extensions ;  there  are  many  other  extensions.  As  a 
result  of  the  agricultural  club  work  in  Georgia  last  year  a  country  boy — I 
think  he  is  nearly  18  years  of  age — is  to  have  a  college  education,  and  is  to 
become  a  man  that  I  believe  the  State  of  Georgia  and  I  hope  the  people  of  the 
United  States  will  live  to  be  proud  of. 

We  have  on  our  farms  in  Georgia  something  like  350,000  to  400,000  boys  and 
girls  growing  up  without  direction,  without  knowledge  of  their  environment, 
without  any  appreciation  of  the  opportunity  which  soil  and  this  State  holds  out 
to  them. 

We  can  correct  that  defect  in  our  educational  system,  and  we  can  do  more  to 
help  the  school  and  the  home.  We  can  bring  a  greater  impulse  to  our  rural 
school  system  through  extension  teaching  than  any  other  agency  which  yet  has 
been  devised. 

I  do  not  speak,  I  hope,  in  an  overbold  manner  when  I  make  this  statement, 
because  my  experience,  after  all,  is  very  limited,  though  I  have  had  over  20 
years'  service  in  agricultural  work,  and  I  think  it  should  entitle  me  to  have 
seen  something  of  the  need  out  in  the  country  and  to  understand  a  little  about 
the  application  of  the  remedy.  Soil  knowledge  is  fundamental  to  our  people ; 
that  has  been  touched  on,  but  I  want  to  illustrate  about  what  has  been  hap- 
pening and  why  we  must  correct  it,  and  then  I  will  try  to  point  out  to  you  this 
measure  as  a  means  of  accomplishing  this  end. 

The  virgin  soil  from  Banks  County,  Ga.,  contains  6,400  pounds  of  nitrogen 
per  acre-foot,  4,000  pounds  of  phosphoric  acid,  and  nearly  15,000  pounds  of 
potash  per  acre-foot.  That  same  type  of  soil  under  cultivation  50  years  by  the 
methods  practiced,  not  alone  in  Georgia,  but  throughout  the  South,  and  largely 
all  over  the  United  States,  analyzes  about  2,000  pounds  of  nitrogen,  less  than 
2,000  pounds  of  phosphoric  acid,  and  in  many  instances  not  over  6,000  to  8,000 


VOCATIONAL  EfctTCATIQN. 


35 


pounds  of  potash.  These  results  have  been  obtained  in  our  own  laboratories. 
You  can  think  of  the  cgmparative  waste  which  has  gone  on  in  this  country  and 
which  is  going  on  unimpeded  to-day.  There  is  no  nation  except  the  United 
States  which  could  have  stood  the  loss  of  soil  food,  which  means  gold  just  tlie 
same  as  you  take  wealth  out  of  the  mines. 

No  other  nation  could  have  stood  it,  and  we  could  not  have  stood  it  but  for 
the  mere  richness  of  our  virgin  soil.  In  Georgia  we  are  trying  to  farm  our 
lands  in  about  the  same  way  they  do  in  all  of  the  States.  I  will  take  you  down 
to  the  seashore  in  southeast  Georgia,  where  they  grow  sea-island  cotton,  where 
their  soils  contain  less  than  1,000  pounds  of  nitrogen,  600  pounds  of  phosphorus, 
and  400  pounds  of  potash  per  acre-foot.  You  see  this  is  a  sand  bed.  *  *  * 

On  our  farms  we  have  no  business  policy.  Any  institution  that  tried  to  operate 
in  Washington  for  a  year  would  go  to  the  wall  under  that  plan.  We  must  there- 
fore put  a  business  policy  on  our  farms  and  conserve  not  only  our  soil  but  con- 
serve our  people,  and  educate  a  generation  how  to  live  in  the  country  and  take 
out  of  the  soil  something  for  their  own  maintenance  and  leave  something  for 
commerce  and  industry  as  well.  *  *  * 

All  over  the  State  of  Georgia  goes  up  this  cry  for  help,  this  cry  for  assistance. 
Our  people  have  come  to  realize  that  we  have  a  great  body  of  knowledge,  which 
means  life  and  opportunity  to  them,  and  they  are  calling  on  us  to  come  out  and 
serve  them.  We  are  doing  all  that  men  can  do  under  the  circumstances,  and 
the  State,  I  think,  is  doing  its  part ;  but  if  we  are  to  reach  this  problem,  and  to 
reach  it  at  the  right  time,  we  must  have  this  movement  stimulated  by  making 
it  a  great  national  problem,  and  then  the  weak  States  and  those  places  where 
the  work  is  being  neglected  will  get  in  line  and  we  will  make  a  forward  move- 
ment for  the  redirection  and  the  institution  of  a  constructive  policy  in  our 
agriculture  which  will  bring  about  the  desired  results. 

Mr.  President,  as  Dr.  Soule  and  others  have  shown,  we  have  been 
hugging  the  delusion  that  we  were  getting  wealthy  from  farming, 
whereas,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  we  have  been  taking  the  nitrogen,  the 
phosphoric  acid  and  potash,  and  the  vegetable  matter,  or  humus,  from 
our  virgin  soils  and  selling  them  in  the  form  of  cereals  and  fibers; 
and  before  we  can  become  prosperous  farmers  we  must  learn  how  to 
restore  to  the  soil  those  ingredients  of  which  we  have  been  so  prodigal. 
Germany  has  for  many  centuries  been  exhausting  her  productivity 
just  as  we  have  been  for  the  last  century,  but  she  understands  better 
than  we  do  the  best  methods  of  restoration  and  fertilization,  through 
rotation  of  crops  and  the  conservation  and  use  of  waste  material,  and 
how  to  increase  the  productivity  of  the  soil  by  the  economic  use  of 
commercial  fertilizers. 

The  following  table,  which  I  take  from  page  13  of  Senate  Docu- 
ment No.  76,  Sixty-second  Congress,  first  session,  shows  some  most 
astonishing  facts  in  regard  to  our  inefficiency  as  farmers.  It  com- 
pares the  increase  in  yield  of  five  staple  crops  in  Germany  and  the 
United  States  from  1878  to  1909 : 


INCREASE  IN  YIELD  OF  FIVE  STAPLE  CROPS  IN  GERMANY  AND  THE 

UNITED  STATES. 


Germany. 

United  States. 

Increase. 

1878- 
1883 

1909 

1879 

1909 

Ger- 
many. 

United 

States. 

Ger- 
many. 

United 
States. 

Bushels 
per  acre, 
15.7 
19.2 
24.5 
31.8 
115.6 

Bushels 
per  acre. 
29.4 
30.5 
39.4 
59.1 

me 

Bushels 
per  acre, 
14.5 
13,8 
24.0 
28.7 
98.  9 

Bushels 
per  acre, 
16.1 
15.8 
24.3 
30.3 
106.8 

Bushels, 
13.7 
11.3 
14.9 
27.7 
93.4 

Bushels. 
1.6 
2.0 
,3 
1.6 
7.6 

Per  cent. 

87.2 
58.8 
60.8 
85.8 
80.8 

Per  cent. 
10.9 
14.2 
1.2 
6.7 
7.9 

Wheat.  .. 

Barley  

Oats.,  

Potatoes  

36  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

An  analysis  of  this  table  shows  substantially  this : 

In  rye  Germany  increased  her  production  87  per  cent,  the  United 
States  only  10  per  cent. 

In  wheat  Germany  increased  her  production  58  per  cent,  the 
United  States  only  14  per  cent. 

In  barley  Germany  increased  her  production  60  per  cent,  the 
United  States  only  1  per  cent. 

In  oats  Germany  increased  her  production  85  per  cent,  the  United 
States  only  6  per  cent. 

In  potatoes  Germany  increased  her  production  80  per  cent,  the 
United  States  only  7  per  cent. 

Germany,  with  an  area  equal  only  to  Minnesota,  Iowa,  and  Mis- 
souri, produces  three-fifths  as  much  oats,  four-fifths  as  much  hops, 
four-fifths  as  much  barley,  three  times  as  much  sugar,  six  times  as 
many  potatoes,  and  nine  times  as  much  rye  as  we  do  in  the  whole 
United  States. 

Mr.  President,  in  1907  Germany  had  43,000,000  acres  sowed  to 
wheat,  barley,  rye,  oats,  and  potatoes,  and  harvested  therefrom 
3,000,000,000  bushels;  while  from  the  88,500,000  acres  sowed  to  the 
same  crops  in  the  United  States  American  farmers  harvested  only 
1,875,000,000  bushels.  In  other  words,  from  less  than  one-half  of  the 
area  German  farmers  harvested  nearly  double  the  number  of  bushels. 

The  matter  may  be  stated  in  this  form : 

If  on  the  land  we  devote  to  wheat,  oats,  barley,  rye,  and  potatoes  American 
farmers  secured  the  same  yield  per  acre  as  is  secured  by  German  farmers  our 
farmers  would  be  richer  by  $1,400,000,000  a  year. 

The  fact  that  Germany  has  been  cropping  her  land  for  centuries 
is  all  the  evidence  we  need  that  if  we  will  follow  in  her  footsteps  in 
the  way  of  progressive  farming  we  may  restore  our  lands  as  she  has 
done. 

Here  is  another  statement  which  I  am  sure  will  interest  Senators, 
because  it  bears  directly  upon  agricultural  education : 

France  is  the  size  of  our  three  greatest  wheat-producing  States — Kansas, 
Minnesota,  and  North  Dakota.  In  1907  France  sowed  16,000,000  acres  to  wheat, 
as  did  these  three  States.  Since  the  introduction  of  beet  culture  French  soils 
have  been  so  rejuvenated  that  from  her  16,000,000  acres  of  wheat  French 
farmers  harvested  325,000,000  bushels,  while  from  our  16,000,000  acres  the 
farmers  of  Kansas,  Minnesota,  and  North  Dakota  harvested  but  188,000,000 
bushels,  or  11.7  bushels  to  the  acre  to  the  Frenchman's  20.3  bushels. 

This  great  economic  problem  is  so  all-important  that  it  is  to-day 
occupying  the  attention  of  the  leading  statesmen  of  our  country  as 
it  has  never  done  before.  Among  others  who  have  spoken  and 
written  upon  the  question  is  Gov.  Harmon,  of  Ohio.  In  an  article 
on  "  Back  to  the  Land  "  he  emphasizes  the  fact  to  which  I  have  been 
alluding,  namely,  that  in  the  field  of  agriculture  our  country  makes  a 
poorer  showing  than  in  that  of  any  of  the  other  of  our  industries. 
His  article  is  so  replete  with  good  sound  sense  that  I  am  inclined  to 
read  a  half  dozen  paragraphs  therefrom.  He  says : 

The  average  yield  of  all  farm  products  in  this  great  agricultural  country  is 
not  creditable.  She  makes  a  poor  showing  in  comparison  with  other  nations, 
poorer  in  that  than  in  any  other  industry. 

The  figures  in  the  reports  taken  from  the  official  records  of  Germany, 
England,  France,  and  the  Netherlands  show  that  they  raise  from  two  to  two 
and  a  half  and  three  times  more  of  all  sorts  of  products  to  the  acre  than  we  do, 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  37 

and  they  have  no  better  soil  and  no  better  climate.  God  has  not  smiled  more 
brightly  on  any  other  land  than  ours. 

We  have  the  soil,  we  have  the  rainfall,  we  have  the  climate.  You  can  trust 
nature  to  produce  if  you  give  nature  the  chance.  And  yet,  while  all  other 
lines  of  our  industries  have  received  a  great  impetus  from  intelligent  thought, 
agriculture  seems  to  have  been  largely  passed  by.  Too  widely  the  idea  prevails 
that  all  a  man  has  to  do  is  to  scratch  the  ground,  sow  some  seed  into  it,  plow 
once  in  a  while,  and  trust  the  Lord  to  do  the  rest. 

The  most  productive  thing  is  practical  intelligence  properly  applied,  and  this 
must  be  done  in  agriculture  as  well  as  anything  else. 

What  is  the  reason  that  the  little  country  of  France,  which  is  not  as  big  as 
one  State  in  the  American  Union,  could  pay  that  enormous  war  indemnity  to 
Germany,  which  everybody  thought  would  break  her  up,  and  in  20  or  25  years 
after  be  the  great  creditor  nation  that  she  is  to-day? 

They  have  45,000  agricultural  schools  in  France,  every  one  of  them  with  a 
little  plat  around  it,  where  they  not  merely  teach  boys  out  of  books,  but  send 
them  to  the  field  to  learn  what  must  be  done  to  make  things  grow  under  the 
smile  of  God;  and  the  result  is  that  France  is  the  greatest  producer  and  the 
greatest  creditor  nation  in. the  world  to-day,  while  we  are  just  beginning  to 
wake  up  in  this  country. 

Really,  Mr.  President,  may  it  not  be  fairly  inferred  that  the  facts 
given  by  Gov.  Harmon  as  to  the  French  schools  are  in  some  measure 
responsible  for  this  condition,  and  may  we  not  profit  by  the  example 
which  France  has  set  for  us  in  this  matter  of  agricultural  education  ? 

I  clipped  from  the  Washington  Post  last  week  this  little  item 
which,  it  seems  to  me,  shows  the  wonderful  prosperity  of  France : 

PAKIS,  May  21. 

The  issue  of  city  of  Paris  bonds  to  the  total  of  $41,000,000  for  the  extension 
of  the  municipal  gas  system  has  been  oversubscribed  80  times.  This  means  that 
the  French  people  have  subscribed  to  the  amount  of  $3,280,000,000  and  have 
actually  paid  in  cash  to-day  more  than  $115,000,000,  as  each  subscriber  had  to 
deposit  $2  per  bond  subscribed  for.  The  issue  was  oversubscribed  in  Paris  alone 
70  times. 

The  question  of  profitable  fanning  to-day  is  coming  to  be  largely  a 
matter  of  rotation  of  crops,  of  fertilization,  of  better  seeds,  and  of 
better  breeds  of  stock.  We  have  no  more  land  to  exploit,  unless  it  be 
land  the  cultivation  of  which  will  have  to  be  made  profitable  by  the 
clearing  of  needed  forests  or  by  irrigation  or  drainage.  We  must 
increase  the  productivity  of  the  acres  we  have  or  become  a  food-im- 
porting nation. 

Mr.  President,  we  have  for  more  than  a  century  been  deceiving  our- 
selves. From  the  platform  and  the  stump  we  have  been  wont  to 
boast  about  our  boundless  natural  resources,  but  students  are  now 
coming  to  see  that  unless  we  change  our  present  processes  these 
resources  will  be  largely  exhausted  within  a  period  that  to  the  far- 
sighted  statesman  is  but  a  day. 

We  have  been  exporting  millions  upon  millions  of  bushels  of  wheat 
and  corn  supposedly  at  a  profit,  but  our  scholars  who  have  been  mak- 
ing the  question  of  soil  fertility  a  study  for  the  past  decade  are  now 
able  to  say  to  us,  as  the  result  of  their  research,  that  every  bushel  of 
wheat  carries  with  it  27  cents'  worth  of  phosphorus,  every  bushel  of 
corn  13  cents'  worth ;  and  our  friends  from  the  South  now  know,  as 
they  did  not  know  20  years  ago,  that  every  pound  of  cotton  takes 
from  the  soil  3  cents'  worth  of  phosphorus.  When  we  consider  the 
hundreds  of  millions  of  bushels  of  wheat  and  corn  and  the  millions 
upon  millions  of  pounds  of  cotton  which  we  have  been  exporting,  the 
extent  of  soil  depletion  is  something  fearful  to  contemplate.  As 


38  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

President  Wallace  recently  expressed  it,  "  The  nineteenth  century 
farmer  was  no  farmer  at  all ;  he  was  a  miner,  mining  the  fertility  of 
the  soil  and  selling  it  for  the  bare  cost  of  mining." 

Mr.  President,  this  is  not  a  pleasant  picture  to  place  before  this 
Senate,  but  we  may  as  well  look  the  fact  squarely  in  the  face  now  as 
later.  If  it  were  necessary  to  accept  these  facts  as  proof  incontro- 
vertible of  a  continued  decadence  in  our  rural  population  they  would 
be  indeed  startling. 

But  I  do  not  believe  they  are;  for  now  that  we  have  exploited  all 
our  virgin  soils,  and  the  demand  is  for  more  corn,  more  wheat,  more 
foodstuffs  of  all  kinds,  with  which  to  feed  the  American  people,  we 
shall  stop  and  think. 

In  the  process  of  time — and  I  believe  that  time  will  arrive  within 
the  next  10  years — the  slipshod,  unscientific  methods  of  farming 
which  we  are  now  practicing  must  be  superseded  by  more  progressive 
and  more  intelligent  methods  or  the  problem  of  the  high  cost  of  living 
will  continue  to  grow  more  and  more  acute  until  it  becomes  unbear- 
able. 

The  remedy  is  at  hand  and  may  be  easily  applied ;  and  that  remedy 
will,  in  my  judgment,  come  from  the  more  intelligent  methods  of 
farming  which  will  result  from  this  bill. 

I  was  very  much  interested  in  Dean  Russell's  very  vigorous  re- 
marks on  this  point  before  our  Committee  on  Agriculture  and 
Forestry. 

He  spoke  particularly  of  the  work  of  Dr.  Hopkins,  of  Illinois,  who, 
Dean  Russell  asserts,  is  one  of  the  greatest  soil  chemists  in  America. 
He  has  been  for  years  laboring  on  this  problem  of  soil  fertility.  I 
read  from  Dean  Russell's  statement : 

The  essence  of  all  curative  processes  is  to  first  start  with  a  diagnosis.  If 
you  have  anything  the  matter  with  you,  you  want  your  physician  first  to 
make  a  proper  diagnosis;  and,  gentlemen,  we  are  already  reaching  the  stage 
where  we  have  to  have  a  soil  doctor ;  we  are  reaching  the  stage  where  we  have 
to  know  what  the  condition  of  that  soil  is ;  and  Dr.  Hopkins  goes  out  and  makes 
these  investigations  of  the  soil  and  finds  out  whether  the  soil  lacks  in  phosphate, 
lacks  in  potash,  or  lacks  in  nitrogen,  and  then  applies  the  remedy.  Let  me 
give  you  one  case  which  Dr.  Hopkins  told  me  about  down  in  Illinois. 

Down  near  Egypt,  in  the  southern  part  of  Illinois,  where  the  land  is  poor, 
they  started  one  of  these  demonstration  farms,  and  Dr.  Hopkins' s  analysis 
showed  that  that  soil  was  lacking  in  phosphate  and  that  an  application  of 
$1.50  worth  of  phosphate  per  acre  to  that  soil  would  change  it  from  a  soil 
that  would  normally  yield  from  12  to  13  bushels  of  corn  to  one  which  would 
yield  from  50  to  60  bushels.  Now,  here  is  a  fact  which  Dr.  Hopkins  told  me 
about :  They  started  a  demonstration  farm  at  one  of  those  sections,  called  in 
the  farmers  from  all  the  surrounding  counties,  and  called  a  meeting,  at  which 
they  pointed  out  the  value  of  rock  phosphate  as  a  remedy  to  a  depleted  soil  in 
restoring  the  fertility. 

One  gray-haired  old  man  came  up  to  Dr.  Hopkins  and  said,  with  tears  in  his 
eyes,  "  Mr.  Hopkins,  I  want  to  thank  you  for  what  I  have  seen  to-day,  but, 
God  help  me,  if  I  only  knew  that  thing  40  years  ago."  He  said,  "  I  have  got 
six  boys  in  my  family,  and  I  have  labored  night  and  day  to  keep  body  and 
breeches  together  and  to  keep  the  family  together,  and  what  have  I  got  on 
my  farm — 12  to  15  and  16  bushels  of  corn  to  the  acre  is  all  that  I  could 
make."  He  further  said,  "Now,  I  would  like  to  have  sent  my  boys  to  college; 
I  would  like  to  have  given  those  children  an  education,  but  I  could  not  raise 
enough  crops  on  that  piece  of  land  that  I  have  owned,  and  so  I  have  tilled  all 
my  lifetime  and  have  earned  barely  enough  to  support  my  family.  Now,"  he 
said,  "  if  a  man  had  only  come  to  me  when  I  was  a  comparatively  young  man 
and  told  me  the  thing  that  you  have  told  me  to-day — that  $1.50  of  rock  phos- 
phate would  have  given  me  the  50  bushels  of  corn  crop,  the  crop  which  was 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  39 

raised  right  over  the  fence  from  where  I  am — I  could  have  sent  my  children 
to  the  high  school  and  to  a  university,  and,"  he  said,  with  tears  running  down 
his  face,  "  I  am  at  the  end,  and  nobody  told  me  that." 

Mr.  President,  in  talking  with  an  intelligent  farmer  in  my  own 
State  not  long  since,  he  told  me  that  60  per  cent  of  all  the  cows  kept 
by  the  farmers  of  Vermont  probably  netted  them  a  loss,  the  profit 
being  made  out  of  the  best  40  per  cent.  The  breeding  of  stock — not 
only  of  cattle,  but  of  horses,  poultry,  sheep,  and  hogs— has  been  done 
in  such  a  haphazard,  unscientific  way  that  there  is  no  wonder  that 
in  some  sections  of  the  country  it  has  been  found  unprofitable. 

Vermont  is  one  of  the  most  progressive  States  in  the  Union  in  the 
matter  of  dairying.  With  her  little  more  than  9,000  square  miles,  a 
goodly  portion  of  which  is  mountainous  and  can  not  be  profitably 
cultivated,  she  produced,  in  1909,  35,394,000  pounds  of  butter.  Maine, 
with  her  much  larger  area,  stands  second  in  New  England  States, 
with  a  production  of  15:405,000  pounds.  Vermont  has  found  her 
dairy  interests  so  profitable  that  she  has  practically  abandoned  her 
sheep  industry,  and  to-day,  instead  of  raising  our  own  draft  horses 
with  which  to  cultivate  our  farms,  we  are  bringing  them  from  Iowa. 
The  reason  for  this  is  that  our  farmers  have  become  better  students 
with  reference  to  the  breeding  of  stock.  Native  cows  have  given  place 
to  the  Jersey,  the  Guernsey,  and  the  Ayrshire. 

We  have  imported  our  varieties  of  plants  and  animals  from  Europe, 
and  we  have  too  long  assumed  that  they  have  the  best  possible 
heredity  to  make  them  profitable  in  our  climate. 

West  Europe  can  not  grow  our  American  varieties  of  corn  in  its 
cloudy,  moist,  cool  climate;  yet  we  have  assumed  that  the  varieties 
of  wheat,  oats,  barley,  and  sugar  beets,  long  bred  to  suit  these  con- 
ditions, were  the  best  varieties  for  our  land  of  sunshine,  with  its 
dry  and  warm  summers. 

We  have  only  begun  to  breed  new  varieties  of  field,  garden^  and 
horticultural  crops.  We  are  as  yet  so  new  that  we  are  exploring  the 
world  to  find  varieties  bred  for  climates  like  ours.  The  results  of 
breeding  vegetables  and  fruits  in  New  England  and  California;  of 
breeding  corn,  as  in  Illinois  and  Indiana ;  of  breeding  cereals,  as  in 
Minnesota  and  Ontario;  of  breeding  cotton,  as  in  the  South,  and  flax 
in  the  Middle  Northwest,  show  that  public  investments  along  this 
line  yield  hundreds  of  per  cent  profit. 

The  branch  stations  provided  in  this  bill  have  proven  necessary  to 
serve  as  additional  plant  breeding  and  testing  stations,  where  varie- 
ties can  be  created  and  tested  so  that  the  valuable  new  kinds  may  be 
distributed  to  all  growers.  In  like  manner  we  have  accepted  from 
west  Europe  the  breeds  of  animals  there  created  through  centuries 
of  careful,  though  not  really  scientific,  methods  of  breeding.  We 
have  created  enough  breeds  in  this  country  to  show  that  breeds  can  be 
created  which  are  peculiarly  adapted  to  our  needs,  and  the  science  of 
creating  valuable  breeds  of  animals  as  well  as  valuable  breeds  of 
plants  has  now  been  as  well  wrought  out  in  this  as  in  any  other 
country. 

The  proposed  branch  stations  will  serve  the  experts  of  the  State 
experiment  stations  and  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  as  centers 
where  those  breeds  of  animals  and  varieties  of  plants  can  be  improved, 
tested,  and  made  available  to  the  farmers  of  the  respective  agricul- 
tural regions. 


40  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

Manifestly  we  are  doing  about  1  per  cent  of  the  scientific  improve- 
ment of  the  heredity  of  our  plants  and  animals  which  we  should. 
For  example,  there  might  properly  be  one  cooperative  animal-breed- 
ing project  at  every  one  of  the  proposed  branch  stations,  in  which 
the  cooperating  group  of  breeders  might  have  scientific  direction 
from  the  State  experiment  station  and  the  Department  of  Agriculture. 

Mr.  President,  we  shall  need  to  double  our  agricultural  products  to 
accommodate  twice  our  present  population  two  generations  hence. 

Experts  in  plant  and  animal  breeding  offer  abundant  proof  that  be- 
tween 10  and  20  per  cent  of  this  increase  can  be  brought  about  by 
scientific  plant  and  animal  breeding. 

Not  of  the  least  interest  is  the  fact  that  the  cost  of  the  permanent 
changes  made  once  for  all  in  the  heredity  of  plants  and  animals  is 
so  slight  that  the  added  result  lowers  the  cost  of  production  and  there- 
fore contributes  to  a  larger  degree  to  keeping  down  the  cost  of  food 
than  any  other  improvements  in  agriculture  excepting  the  improve- 
ment made  in  the  efficiency  of  the  people  through  education  and 
demonstration. 

Mr.  President,  in  view  of  the  facts  and  figures  which  I  have  given — 
and  they  are,  in  my  judgment,  thoroughly  established  and  beyond 
question — is  it  any  wonder  that  the  agricultural  sections  in  many 
parts  of  this  land  have  been  showing  a  decadence  in  population  ? 

I  have  been  so  much  interested  in  this  question  of  the  decadence  of 
our  rural  population  that  I  have  made  an  investigation  as  to  the  num- 
ber of  counties  in  the  United  States  which  show  an  actual  loss  in 
population  between  1880  and  1910.  It  will  undoubtedly  surprise 
many  Senators  to  be  told  that  there  are  252  in  the  United  States 
which  actually  have  a  less  population  to-day  than  they  had  30  years 
ago,  and,  with  very  rare  exceptions,  those  counties  are  in  our  farming 
or  rural  sections. 

TRADES  AND  INDUSTRIES. 

In  the  discussion  of  this  measure  thus  far,  I  have  asked  the  atten- 
tion of  the  Senate  chiefly  to  agriculture  and  home  economics.  I  have 
tried  to  show  that,  as  a  great  economic  proposition,  farming  must  be 
made  more,profi table,  farm  homes  better  and  rural  life  generally  im- 
proved and  different  from  what  it  is  to-day,  to  the  end  that  equilib- 
rium between  the  city  and  country  might  be  restored. 

I  think  I  have  dwelt  at  sufficient  length  upon  these  points,  and  I 
now  ask  the  attention  of  Senators  to  a  question  which  in  many  re- 
spects is  more  important  than  all  the  other  important  features  to 
which  I  have  referred,  and  that  is :  What  are  we  going  to  do  with  and 
for  the  boys  in  the  cities?  From  every  quarter  comes  the  disquieting 
intelligence  that  the  drift  has  been  going  from  bad  to  worse  until  to- 
day it  threatens  our  very  political  existence  as  a  Nation.  The  ques- 
tion of  good  citizenship  attaches  to  our  rural  life,  and  there  is  every 
reason  why  we  should  consider  the  character  of  our  citizenship  as  it 
appertains  to  the  boy  on  the  farm.  But  in  the  immediate  present  at 
least  there  are  no  such  alarming  dangers  confronting  rural  life  as  are 
at  present  manifest  in  that  substratum  of  humanity  which  flocks  to 
the  congested  sections  in  all  our  larger  cities. 

Our  discussions  in  the  Senate  during  the  past  three  years  upon  the 
great  question  of  conservation  would  fill  volumes — indeed,  Mr.  Presi- 
dent, it  has  filled  volumes.  It  has  been  one  of  the  leading  topics  of 


VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION.  41 

discussion  throughout  the  land,  and  it  is  right  that  it  should  be.  We 
should  preserve  our  forests,  our  mines,  our  quarries,  and  our  water 
power,  but  this  is  not  all. 

Prof.  Carver,  of  Harvard  University,  well  says: 

In  the  present  conservation  movement  it  is  highly  important  that  we  realize 
two  things :  First,  that  our  most  valuable  resources  are  our  people ;  and,  second, 
that  we  are  wasting  people  more  than  we  are  wasting  anything  else. 

And  he  very  forcibly  adds: 

If  we  forget  either  of  these  things  we  shall  find  ourselves  trying  to  save  at  the 
spigot  while  we  are  wasting  at  the  bung. 

Mr.  President,  a  leading  educator  has  said  that — 

By  industrial  education  we  are  asked  to  shape  the  lives  of  the  children  of 
to-day,  and  thereby  to  make  the  men  and  women  of  to-morrow — the  American  of 
to-morrow.  Each  year  2,500,000  graduate  from  our  elementary  schools,  proud 
and  confident  of  having  accomplished  the  first  great  task  of  their  lives  in  suc- 
cessfully finishing  the  eight  years'  course  with  credit.  An  equal  number  of 
children,  a  vast  army  of  two  and  a  half  million  little  ones,  most  of  them  only  14 
years  of  age,  leave  the  same  schools  discredited,  unsuccessful,  aimless,  most  of 
them  having  gotten  no  further  than  the  sixth  grade,  having  learned  little  else 
than  the  three  R's,  not  educated  in  any  sense,  but  only  possessed  of  the  rudi- 
ments whereby  real  education  may  be  acquired.  They  have  been,  in  a  way, 
schooled  only  in  how  to  fail.  These  are  the  children  who  go  into  the  industries 
and  deserve  and  require  industrial  trade  education. 

The  Daily  Iron  Trade  Review,  in  its  issue  of  April  30,  in  a  vigorous 
editorial  upon  this  bill,  uses  this  language: 

The  untrained  man  is  not  necessarily  a  day  laborer.  He  is  such  a  man,  how- 
ever, as,  when  thrown  off  his  present  employment  and  upon  his  own  resources — 
oftentimes  slender — becomes  a  menace  to  society  either  actively  or  passively. 

Something  must  be  done  for  him,  and  this  something  the  Society  for  the  Pro- 
motion of  Industrial  Education  believes  can  be  afforded  through  the  Page  bill. 
There  are  many  young  men  wasting  their  efforts  along  more  or  less  unprofitable 
lines  of  endeavor  who  would  be  valuable  members  of  society  if  they  could  have 
had  the  advantage  of  a  special  training  when  of  suitable  age. 

It  must  be  made  almost  impossible  for  there  to  be  such  an  anomaly  as  an  un- 
trained man  before  our  countrty  can  claim  rightfully  to  have  afforded  every  man 
an  equal  chance.  There  is  a  place  for  the  Society  for  the  Promotion  of  Indus- 
trial Education  in  the  United  States.  There  should  be  a  place  in  the  Federal 
Statute  books  for  the  Page  bill. 

Vocational  education  helps  the  boy  "  to  find  himself,"  especially  if 
we  link  his  vocational  education  with  the  seventh  and  eighth  grades — 
before  compulsory  education  ceases.  Modern  application  of  educa- 
tion to  practical  life  contemplates  not  only  assistance  to  the  boy  to 
find  himself,  as  they  say,  but  it  aids  him  in  finding  a  place  where  he 
can  get  employment. 

One  of  fiie  best  illustrations  of  how  this  try  ing- out  process — the 
process  of  helping  the  boy  to  find  himself — works  out  may  be  found 
in  Newton,  Mass.  In  the  school  system  itself  there  is  a  bureau  where 
every  scholar  is  studied  with  reference  to  his  physical  and  mental 
capacities  and  endowments.  He  is  studied  psychologically  and  his 
traits  of  character  ascertained.  His  past  school  record  is  examined, 
heredity  as  well  as  environment  is  considered,  and  the  boy's  own 
tastes  and  tendencies  are,  as  a  matter  of  course,  made  the  subject  of 
study. 

When  this  is  done,  a  decision  is  made  as  to  what  general  depart- 
ment of  labor  he  is  best  fitted  for,  and  then  his  school  life  is  laid  out 
upon  that  basis,  and  at  the  same  time  the  bureau  takes  upon  itself  the 
burden  of  finding  the  boy  a  place  to  work  in  such  occupation  as  it  has 
been  previously  decided  he  is  best  adapted  to  filL 


42  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

Mr.  Meyer  Bloomfield,  director  Boston  Vocation  Bureau,  has  well 
expressed  the  situation  as  to  this  matter.  He  says : 

The  rediscovery  of  the  child  in  school  and  shop  has  become  the  task  of  our 
agents.  Too  long  have  children  been  living  and  learning  and  working  together 
as  fractions  of  selves.  Personality  is  subordinated  to  system.  Excessive  organ- 
ization is  stifling  child  energies  struggling  for  self-expression.  Vocational  guid- 
ance looks  to  the  whole  child,  to  its  past,  present,  and  future.  Through  its 
efficacious  interest  and  cooperating  agencies  it  demands  the  utmost  investment 
of  all  that  a  child  is  and  may  become. 

Mr.  President,  I  almost  tremble  lest  I  seem  to  give  prominence  to 
the  widening  gulf  between  capital  and  labor.  I  hope  I  am  not  a 
pessimist,  and  yet  I  confess  that  when  I  read  an  alarming  emanation 
of  one  who  has  a  right  to  speak  for  labor  I  am  inclined  to  "  stop,  look, 
and  listen." 

Raymond  Robins,  who  is  known  as  the  "  social  expert "  in  what  is 
called  the  "  Men  and  religion  movement,"  gives  expression  to  the  fol- 
lowing thought,  and  I  want  Senators  to  allow  that  thought  to  sink 
deep  into  their  minds.  He  says : 

The  old  vertical  lines  of  social  division — by  income,  profession,  and  family- 
are  gone.  The  new-line  is  horizontal.  Above  it  are  all  those  who  live  by  divi- 
dends and  below  it  are  all  those  who  live  by  labor.  Already  it  is  more  than  a 
line — it  is  a  crack,  a  cleavage.  And  I  tell  you  that  unless  that  cleavage  is 
bridged  in  the  next  10  years  it  never  will  be  bridged  in  our  time. 

Raymond  Robins  was  giving  expression  to  no  threat;  indeed,  he 
may  be  wrong  in  regard  to  his  diagnosis  of  the  future  of  the  Ameri- 
can people,  but  does  it  not  behoove  us  as  Senators  to  take  cognizance 
of  the  utterances  and  claims  of  a  man  like  Raymond  Robins;  and  if 
we  can  lift  some  of  those  below  the  horizontal  line  to  which  he  refers 
and  give  them  a  portion  of  the  part  above  the  line,  should  we  not 
do  it? 

Mr.  President,  there  is  no  way  to  do  this  except  by  reaching  down 
and  taking  the  hands  of  those  below  the  line  and,  through  vocational 
education,  do  what  we  can  do  to  bridge  this  cleavage,  and  we  must  do 
it  now.  Raymond  Robins  says  that  unless  it  is  bridged  within  the 
next  10  years  it  never  will  be  bridged. 

I  am  not  ready  to  confess  this — it  may  not  be  true — but  I  am  not 
fully  prepared  to  say  that  there  is  not  some  element  of  truth  in  his 
warning. 

I  am  ready  to  give  the  benefit  of  the  doubt  to  the  cause  of  the  sons 
of  the  men  who  toil,  even  though  the  expense  of  doing  so  to  the 
Federal  Government  might  be  even  more  than  15  cents  per  capita  per 
annum  of  our  population,  the  amount  called  for  by  this  bill. 

Place  over  against  this  statement  of  Raymond  Robins  another, 
which  appeared  in  our  Washington  dailies  May  IT.  I  read : 

HARVARD'S  FINANCES. 

CAMBRIDGE,  MASS.,  May  17. 

Harvard  University,  according  to  the  annual  financial  report,  now  has  $25,- 
000,000  in  productive  funds,  of  which  $17,000,000  is  in  stocks  and  bonds.  This 
is  an  increase  of  a  million  and  a  quarter  over  last  year.  From  these  funds  the 
university  has  an  annual  income  of  $2,500,000. 

Mr.  President,  I  glory  in  our  New  England  colleges.  It  has  been 
well  said  that  they  "  have  sprung  from  the  very  soil,  and  the  lifeblood 
of  our  fathers  is  in  them." 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION".  43 

He  would  be  bold  indeed  who  should  undertake  to  capitalize  the 
good  will  of  the  old-time  colleges  of  New  England  or  to  estimate  the 
power  that  inheres  in  their  long  record  of  usefulness  and  leadership. 

Long  may  they  live,  and  may  the  power  of  their  usefulness  and 
leadership  continue.  Their  walls  have  risen  from  the  modest  bounty 
of  New  England  yeomen,  and  men  and  women  have  worn  homespun 
that  the  colleges  of  their  boys  might  continue  to  live.  It  has  been 
the  best  blood  of  rural  New  England  that  has  peopled  the  plains  and 
cities  of  the  West,  and  the  vigorous  leaven  of  New  England  stock  in 
western  communities,  from  Ohio  to  California,  has  been  drawn  from 
the  best-educated  and  most  progressive  element  of  the  small  towns  of 
the  country  districts  of  rocky  New  England. 

I  have  asked  the  United  States  Commissioner  of  Education,  Dr. 
Claxton,  to  give  me  a  statement  showing  the  number  of  scholars, 
respectively,  in  the  elementary  or  grammar  grades,  the  secondary 
or  high  schools,  and  the  colleges,  together  with  the  percentage  of  cost 
for  each  class. 

It  will  probably  surprise  those  who  have  not  given  the  matter  much 
consideration  to  learn  that  only  1.71  per  cent  are  in  the  college 
grades;  only  5.35  per  cent  in  the  secondary,  or  high-school,  grades. 
The  great  mass  of  our  boys — to  be  exact,  92.93  per  cent — are  in  the 
elementary  grades. 

The  commissioner's  report  shows  that  we  are  taking  splendid  care 
of  those  who  enjoy  the  benefits  of  high-school  and  college  courses — 
the  7  per  cent — but  we  are  not  doing  our  duty  to  the  other  93  per 
cent — the  children  of  those  who,  by  reason  of  having  to  become  the 
breadwinners  of  the  family,  do  not  pass  beyond  the  elementary 
grades. 

The  commissioner  states  that  the  cost  of  pupils  in  the  elementary 
grades  is  $21.78  per  capita ;  of  those  in  the  public  high  schools,  $45 ; 
of  those  in  the  university,  $280. 

With  the  consent  of  the  Senate,  I  will  include  in  my  remarks  the 
table  furnished  by  Dr.  Claxton. 

PER  CENT  OF  ENROLLMENT  AND  PER  CENT  OF  COST  FOR  THE  THREE 

GRADES  IN  1908-9. 


Grades. 

Per 
cent  of 
enroll- 
ment. 

Per 
cent  of 
cost. 

92  93 

74.68 

Secondary                                

5.35 

10.08 

Higher 

1.71 

15.24 

Practically  all  of  these  boys  who  are  in  the  92  per  cent  class  are 
to-day  deprived  of  any  kind  of  vocational  or  industrial  training. 
And  because  of  this  fact  they  are  swelling  the  ranks  of  our  outcasts 
and  criminals  and  filling  our  jails  and  asylums  with  the  flotsam  and 
the  jetsam  of  our  social  life.  They  form  the  very  scum  which  rises 
to  the  top  of  the  great  seething  caldron  of  uneducated  humanity  and 
is  forming  that  uncontrollable  element  which  is  the  natural  out- 
growth of  the  injustice  which  is  to-day  being  practiced  on  the  sons 


44  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

of  our  toiling  millions  in  the  matter  of  withholding  from  them  a 
decent  measure  of  vocational  and  industrial  training. 

Mr.  President,  there  is  no  truer  saying  than  that  "  talent  should  lay 
its  tribute  upon  the  altar  of  human  need."  If  there  is  any  human 
need  demanding  tribute  from'  the  best  talent  of  this  Senate  more  than 
the  need  of  the  average  American  boy,  I  do  not  know  where  it  is. 

To-day,  in  my  humble  judgment,  the  sons  of  our  toiling  millions 
are  not  receiving  that  fair  equality  of  opportunity  to  which  they  are 
entitled ;  and  let  us  not  deceive  ourselves  with  the  idea  that  these  boys, 
as  they  grow  up,  will  fail  to  note  and  keenly  feel  that  inequality  of 
opportunity. 

They  have  minds  no  less  acute,  perception  no  less  keen  than  those 
of  us  who  have  enjoyed  a  better  education.  They  know  they  have 
not  had  a  square  deal,  and,  knowing  this,  is  it  any  wonder  that  there 
is  discontent  and  that  as  a  result  of  this  discontent  the  standard  of 
citizenship  is  being  lowered  ?  Is  it  not  true  that  in  the  minds  of  by 
far  too  large  a  percentage  of  them  the  Stars  and  Stripes  is  not  that 
emblem  of  justice  and  equality  which  it  ought  to  be?  And  yet,  Mr. 
President,  when  we  confront  a  proposition  like  the  one  now  before  us 
we  are  met  with  the  cry  of  expense,  cost,  and  unconstitutional.^. 

I  wish  to  state  with  all  the  force  at  my  command  that,  in  my  judg- 
ment, any  bill  the  chief  purpose  of  which  is  the  promotion  of  good 
citizenship  is  not  unconstitutional,  because  good  citizenship  is  an 
absolute  sine  qua  non  for  the  general  welfare  and  common  defense. 
The  very  foundations  of  good  citizenship  lie  in  loyal,  contented,  and 
intelligent  and  prosperous  people. 

Mr.  President,  it  is  a  condition,  and  not  a  theory,  that  confronts 
this  Government  to-day.  If  our  citizens  in  the  generation  ahead  of 
us  are  not  able  to  earn  a  decent  livelihood  and  give  their  children 
such  an  education  as  will  equip  them  to  run  the  race  of  life  with  a 
fair  measure  of  success,  it  will  be  impossible  to  convince  them  that 
they  are  receiving  that  equality  of  opportunity  to  which  they  are  en- 
titled and  without  which  they  can  not  be  loyal  citizens. 

Mr.  President,  this  is  an  age  of  steam,  of  electricity,  of  enterprise 
and  progress.  To-day  there  are  few,  if  any,  laboring  men  in  this 
country  who  do  not,  through  the  press  and  otherwise,  keep  in  touch 
with  the  most  advanced  modern  thought  in  so  far  as  it  relates  to  their 
own  personal  welfare. 

The  Grange  and  other  like  organizations  represent  the  farmer ;  the 
American  Federation  of  Labor,  the  American  Manufacturers'  Asso- 
ciation, and  kindred  associations  and  organizations  represent  those 
engaged  in  industrial  pursuits;  and  I  wish  to  state  to  this  Senate 
to-day  that  if  there  is  a  single  association  of  any  considerable  size, 
either  along  the  lines  of  agriculture  or  the  mechanic  arts,  that  has 
not  discussed  this  measure  fully  and  passed  judgment  upon  it,  I  do 
not  know  where  that  organization  is. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  leaders  in  the  American  Federation  of 
Labor  were  opposed  to  the  education  of  large  numbers  along  indus- 
trial lines.  It  is  not  true. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  great  Association  of  Manufacturers  find 
it  more  profitable  to  work  ignorant  than  skilled  men.  It  is  not,  in 
my  judgment,  true.  It  is  an  interesting  fact,  Mr.  President,  that  dur- 
ing one  of  the  days  of  March  last,  Mr.  H.  E.  Miles,  chairman  of  the 


VOCATIONAL  EWCATIOtf.  45 

committee  on  industrial  education  of  the  National  Association  of 
Manufacturers,  and  Samuel  Gompers,  president  of  the  American 
Federation  of  Labor,  were  together  here  at  Washington.  I  sought  an 
interview  at  which  both  of  them  should  be  present,  but  the  two 
organizations  were  so  antagonistic  and  hostile  that  my  efforts  to 
bring  about  a  conference  between  them  were  unsuccessful. 

This  being  the  case,  I  asked  this  official  of  the  National  Association 
of  Manufacturers  to  write  me  a  letter  setting  forth  the  views  of  his 
association  touching  this  bill,  and  at  my  meeting  with  Mr.  Gompers 
I  read  this  letter.  At  the  close  of  the  reading,  he  said : 

That  letter  expresses  the  views  of  the  American  Federation  of  Labor  exactly, 
and  it  states  them  better  than  I  could  state  them  myself. 

I  think  this  fact  is  worthy  of  being  especially  emphasized.  Here 
are  two  organizations  which,  so  far  as  I  know,  disagree  upon  every 
or  almost  every  other  point.  They  represent  conflicting  interests  in 
the  labor  world,  and  yet  on  this  vocational  education  measure  they  are 
in  entire  and  hearty  accord ;  and  from  one  end  of  this  country  to  the 
other  the  associations  which  represent  the  great  industrial  interests 
of  our  land  are  sending  me  letters  and  telegrams  approving  this  bill 
and  assuring  me  that  if  it  passes  it  will  solve  better  than  any  other 
plan  before  the  American  people  at  this  time  one  of  the  most  vexa- 
tious economic  problems  that  now  confronts  us. 

Let  me  quote  very  briefly  from  the  views  of  Mr.  Gompers,  repre- 
senting the  American  Federation  of  Labor,  and  Mr.  Miles,  represent- 
ing the  National  Association  of  Manufacturers.  Mr.  Gompers  says: 

Under  this  proposed  law  the  Federal  Government,  the  States,  and  the  local 
communities  would  be  united  in  a  cooperative  movement  to  place  within  the 
reach  of  every  boy  and  girl  in  the  country  the  opportunity  of  securing  both  a 
general  and  a  vocational  education. 

The  prosperity  of  a  nation  depends  upon  its  industrial  and  commercial  suc- 
cess, and,  in  respect  to  these,  success  depends  upon  the  training  and  intelligence 
of  its  citizens.  It  is  therefore  plainly  evident  that  a  national  educational  sys- 
tem determines  its  destiny. 

The  compilation  of  statistics  relating  to  the  period  of  school  attendance  by 
the  young  of  the  country,  the  study  of  these  statistics,  and  the  result  of  the  lim- 
ited attendance  of  so  large  a  proportion  of  the  school  population  which  they 
have  disclosed  have  attracted  the  attention  not  only  of  men  engaged  in  educa- 
tional effort,  but  the  people  generally.  The  fact  that  so  large  a  proportion  of 
the  boys  in  the  United  States  are  leaving  school  at  or  before  the  completion  of 
an  elementary  course  of  instruction,  that  the  major  portion  of  them  are  subse- 
quently to  earn  a  living  by  the  work  of  their  hands,  that  at  an  early  age  they 
seek  employment  largely  in  unskilled  industries,  because  they  are  fitted  for 
nothing  better  and  because  they  are  too  young  to  enter  upon  the  work  of  ap- 
prentices, even  were  that  possible,  and  that  the  prospects  of  emergence  from 
unskilled  to  skilled  industries  is  so  small,  is  attracting  attention  to  the  prob- 
lem and  demanding  solution. 

Mr.  Miles  says: 

The  need  of  industrial  education  is  coming  to  be  seen  in  all  quarters,  and  the 
movement  has  a  tremendous  impetus.  The  purpose  of  the  Page  bill  is  not  to 
develop  engineers  through  technical  schools,  etc.,  but  to  educate  the  boys  and 
girls  who  are  going  to  earn  their  own  living  in  factories,  stores,  etc.,  and  as 
wives  of  our  working  people. 

This  money  (the  money  appropriated  by  this  bill)  would  be  spent  in  continua- 
tion schools,  evening  schools,  and  in  day  schools  for  boys  and  girls  of  about  14 
years  of  age  and  over.  This  would  be  the  first  appropriation  to  make  happy 
and  efficient  and  educated,  in  a  measure,  to  their  life  work  the  children  of  the 
common  people  who  live  in  the  cities  and  towns. 


46  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

The  Page  bill  likewise  recognizes  the  other  half  of  our  population,  those  who 
live  by  agriculture,  by  giving  about  the  same  amount  for  agricultural  and  the 
domestic  arts,  not  in  the  high-grade  schools  that  turn  out  experts,  but  in  the 
common  schools,  where  are  educated  the  boys  and  girls  who  will  be  the  real 
farmers  of  the  future.  Not  one  dollar  has  ever  been  given  educationally  to  the 
factory  boys  and  girls,  and  this  bill  proposes  that  it  shall  now  be  given. 

I  think  very  few  Senators  have  ever  stopped  to  consider  the  mag- 
nitude of  this  great  proposition  and  the  millions  upon  millions  of 
people  which  it  would  favorably  affect  from  ocean  to  ocean  and  from 
Canada  to  the  Gulf. 

Mr.  President,  the  nations  of  the  earth  are  now  engaged  in  a  race 
for  commercial  supremacy,  and  in  that  race  to-day  Germany  is  con- 
fessedly taking  the  lead.  It  is  said  that  she  annually  exports  a  bil- 
lion dollar's  worth  of  her  products,  and  this  fact  is,  in  large  meas- 
ure, owing  to  that  other  fact  that  she  is  more  progressive  in  the  mat- 
ter of  industrial  education  than  any  other  nation  in  the  world.  In 
Germany  every  boy,  even  to  the  sons  of  the  Emperor,  must  learn  a 
trade.  Japan  has  recently  adopted  an  educational  system.  She 
studied  the  educational  systems  of  the  world  and  then  adopted  the 
German  system.  Men  like  to  do  what  they  can  do  well,  and  no  boy 
entering  any  manufacturing  establishment  can  do  his  best  work  if  he 
understands  that  his  equipment  for  that  work  is  so  inferior  to  those 
with  whom  he  is  associated  that  he  is  at  a  disadvantage. 

The  boy  does  not  stand  still ;  he  is  either  progressive  or  retrogres- 
sive. Inspire  him  with  faith  in  himself,  and  he  puts  forth  his  best 
efforts  to  succeed.  We  all  work  better  under  encouragement  and  in- 
spiration than  under  the  lash  and  spur. 

To  learn  more  is  to  earn  more.  If  the  boy  could  have  discovered 
this  fact  before  being  thrown  upon  his  own  resources  as  he  passed 
from  the  grammar  school,  he  would  have  put  forth  his  best  efforts  to 
secure  a  vocational  education.  But  this  fact  was  not  pressed  home 
to  him.  Indeed,  under  existing  school  conditions  the  opportunity  to 
learn  more  about  the  practical  things  of  life  does  not  exist,  and  it  is 
one  of  the  main  purposes  of  this  bill  to  bring  into  existence  schools 
which  will  give  the  average  boy  the  equipment  which  his  restless, 
progressive  nature  demands  and  which  he,  as  a  prospective  citizen  of 
this  country,  is  entitled  to  receive. 

I  dislike  to  seem  to  criticize  our  school  methods,  because  I  recog- 
nize that  a  multitude  of  our  wisest  and  best  men  are  unselfishly  and 
patriotically  devoting  themselves  to  the  education  of  the  young  men 
and  women  of  our  land. 

That  they  are  doing  good  work  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  during 
the  last  decade  the  ratio  of  illiteracy  has  decreased  from  10.7  per  cent 
to  7.7  per  cent,  or,  to  state  it  differently,  it  was  39  per  cent  higher 
in  1900  than  in  1910. 

Have  we  not  too  long  assumed  that  the  mere  school  definition  of 
illiteracy  is  misleading?  Have  we  realized  what  a  small  part  of  our 
people  are  vocationally  trained?  Have  we  not  stopped  with  teach- 
ing our  youth  the  three  R's  ?  Have  we  taught  them  to  make  use  of 
their  elementary  training  in  gaining  knowledge  and  skill  in  the  great 
vocations  open  to  more  than  92  per  cent  of  them?  Have  not  our 
educators  been  asleep  as  to  the  latent  cultural  power  and  value  of 
the  body  of  knowledge  in  the  great  major  vocations  of  the  farm,  the 
shop,  and  the  home? 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  47 

But  I  submit,  not  as  a  criticism  but  as  a  suggestion  for  the  consid- 
eration of  the  Senate,  that  there  is  something  wrong  in  a  school 
system  which  drives  the  average  boy  away  from  school  life  at  the 
ver}^  time  when  he  should  be  just  beginning  to  realize  the  great  im- 
portance of  education.  It  is  absolutely  futile  to  argue  that  it  is  the 
boy's  own  fault.  If  there  is  any  criticism  to  offer  upon  our  system 
of  education  it  is  that  the  curriculum  repels  rather  than  attracts  the 
average  boy,  and,  worse  still,  the  father  of  the  average  boy. 

Mr.  President,  we  shall  never  change  this  condition,  in  my  judg- 
ment, until  we  introduce  into  our  school  system  a  greater  or  less 
measure  of  vocational  education.  To  just  what  extent  this  can  be 
done  is  a  problem  which  we  must  work  out.  It  is  a  problem  which 
our  educators,  as  they  to-day  look  upon  the  school  curriculum,  will 
not  solve  except  by  slow  and  tedious  processes,  unless  something  is 
done  to  stimulate  and  point  the  way  substantially  as  is  contemplated 
by  this  bill. 

Unless  Senators  have  given  the  matter  some  thought,  very  few  of 
them  realize  the  extent  to  which  training  along  industrial  lines  can 
be  made  to  contribute  to  a  general  cultural  education.  We  all  re- 
member how  our  boys  were  given  abstract  problems  in  arithmetic 
when  they  were  young.  They  learned  to  add,  substract,  multiply, 
and  divide.  But  if  the  men  who  prepared  the  arithmetics  for  those 
boys  had  known  that  they  were  going  into  a  machine  shop  after 
leaving  school,  and  if  they  could  have  provided  an  arithmetic  which 
would  have  been  just  as  well  suited  to  give  the  boys  a  cultural  edu- 
cation and  at  the  same  time  equip  them  with  a  practical  knowledge, 
this  change  of  textbook  would  have  been  of  incalculable  value  to 
them  when  they  went  into  the  shop. 

I  have  before  me  an  example  of  problems  found  in  a  textbook 
published  by  the  General  Electric  Co.,  of  Schenectady,  N.  Y.  This 
company  assists  in  the  training  of  boys  who  are  to  find  work  in  its 
shops  later  on.  Let  me  read  two  or  three  of  the  problems  which 
they  give  to  their  students : 

If  a  hollow  cylindrical  casting  is  3  feet  long  and  1.5  feet  inside  diameter,  and 
2  feet  outside  diameter,  what  will  be  its  weight  if  cast  iron  weighs  0.26  pound 
per  cubic  inch?  What  will  be  the-  cost  at  $2.25  per  hundred? 

If  in  finishing  we  take  a  cut  one-fourth  inch  inside  and  one-fourth  inch  out- 
side and  sell  the  metal  turned  off  at  50  cents  per  hundred  pounds,  what  is  the 
final  cost  of  casting? 

The  arithmetic  of  this  company  is  full  of  concrete  problems  like  the 
two  I  have  cited.  In  brief,  the  cultural  is  attained  through  the  voca- 
tional, and  who  can  say  it  is  not  a  wise  change? 

In  seven  States — Massachusetts,  Connecticut,  New  York,  New 
Jersey,  Maryland,  Michigan,  and  Wisconsin — recent  laws  have  been 
enacted  relating  to  vocational  training  for  the  industries,  and  Massa- 
chusetts has  a  commission  on  industrial  education. 

Under  her  law  enacted  in  January,  1906,  17  independent  industrial 
schools  were  organized  prior  to  January  1,  1910.  This  law  is  be- 
lieved to  be  one  of  the  best,  and  I  ask  consent  to  publish  it  as  an 
appendix  to  these  remarks,  as  it  may  be  of  assistance  to  those  who 
would  study  the  practical  workings  of  industrial  education. 

The  underlying  principle  of  this  Massachusetts  law  is  that  those 
who  reap  the  benefits  of  the  appropriation  shall  contribute  a  share  of 
the  expense.  The  law,  among  other  things,  provides  that  the  Com- 


48  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

monwealth  shall  repay  to  any  city  or  town  one-half  the  expense  of 
these  schools.    I  quote  one  section  of  the  law : 

Upon  certification  by  the  board  of  education  to  the  auditor  of  the  Common- 
wealth that  a  city,  town,  or  district,  either  by  means  raised  by  local  taxation  or 
by  means  donated  or  contributed,  has  maintained  an  independent  industrial 
school,  the  Commonwealth,  in  order  to  aid  in  the  maintenance  of  such  schools, 
shall  pay  anually  from  the  treasury  to  such  cities,  towns,  or  districts,  a  sum 
equal  to  one-half  the  sum  raised  by  local  taxation  for  this  purpose. 

Mr.  President,  at  one  of  our  hearings  before  the  Committee  -on 
Agriculture  and  Forestry,  Mr.  Herbert  Myrick,  president  of  the  or- 

§anization  which  publishes  the  Orange-Judd  agricultural  papers,  at 
pringfield,  Mass.,  appeared  before  us  and  exhibited  a  chart  giving 
the  money  value  of  industrial  training  as  shown  by  the  Newark 
Technical  High  School,  at  Newark,  N.  J.  I  confess  that  the  figures 
seemed  to  me  so  absolutely  unbelievable  that  I  did  not  wish  to  give 
them  to  the  Senate  as  facts  without  having  them  verified,  so  I  wrote 
to  the  principal  of  the  schoel,  quoting  Mr.  Myrick's  statement.  His 
reply  was  that  in  the  main  the  statement  was  correct.  Here  is  the 
statement : 

The  so-called  skilled  mechanic  in  the  industries  of  New  Jersey  earns  fifteen 
to  twenty-five  dollars  per  week,  but  let  the  same  adult  mechanics  spend  their 
evenings  for  a  while  acquiring  technical  training  and  industrial  education  and 
so  greatly  is  their  capacity  developed  that  at  the  age  of  45  they  occupy  positions 
that  pay  an  average  of  $66  per  week. 

This  is  the  actual  result  of  the  census  taken  of  the  graduates  of  the 
Newark  (N.  J.)  Technical  High  School,  which  is  an  evening  school. 
These  are  mechanics  who  work  at  their  trade  during  the  day  and 
come  in  and  attend  evening  classes.  I  have,  from  what  I  believe  to 
be  good  authority,  the  information  that  this  result  was  obtained  from 
an  actual  canvass  of  the  graduates  of  this  Newark  Technical  School 
for  a  period  of  years,  and  that  the  replies  received  covered  85  per 
cent  of  those  who  had  graduated. 

Whether  the  replies  to  the  other  15  per  cent  would  materially 
change  the  proportion  upward  or  downward,  I  am  unable  to  say. 
In  any  event,  it  could  not  change  it  very  much.  Let  me  repeat  that 
the  average  so-called  skilled  mechanic  received  from  fifteen  to  twenty- 
five  dollars  per  week,  while  these  graduates  from  this  Newark  Tech- 
nical School  averaged  $66  per  week,  thus  showing  that  the  men  who 
were  sufficiently  enterprising  and  ambitious  to  take  the  training  at 
this  school  rose  to  positions  as  managers,  foremen,  and  overseers. 

In  passing,  let  me  refer  to  one  point  in  connection  with  this  school, 
because  it  illustrates  how  I  hope  this  bill  will  work  out  with  reference 
to  the  separate  schools  for  the  trades  and  industries  provided  for  in 
section  4  of  the  bill.  There  are,  in  round  numbers,  1,600  towns  and 
cities  in  this  country  having  a  population  of  4,000  or  more. 

Let  us  suppose  for  a  moment  that  every  one  of  these  should  avail 
itself  of  this  appropriation,  and  let  us  suppose  that  the  $3,000,000 
which  section  4  appropriates  is  matched  by  a  State  appropriation  in 
each  State,  making  $6,000,000,  and  then  that  these  cities  shall  add 
thereto  as  much  more  by  local  taxation,  making  $12,000,000  in  all. 

This  would  mean  an  average  of  $7,500  for  each  school.  Educators 
say  that  it  takes  $100  per  capita  to  conduct  a  good  school  of  this  kind. 
This  means  that  these  schools  would  have  an  average  of  75  scholars 
each,  and  that  these  1,600  schools  would  annually  send  out  to  infuse 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  49 

new  life  into  our  manufacturing  industries  approximately  120,000 
trained  men. 

You  will  observe,  Mr.  President,  that  I  have  predicated  my  conclu- 
sions upon  the  hypothesis  that  local  taxation  will  supplement  and 
match  tne  Federal  and  State  appropriations. 

Bearing  upon  this  point,  I  wish  to  say  that  the  law  of  New  Jersey, 
under  which  the  Newark  Technical  School  was  established,  provides 
that  whenever  any  board  of  education,  school  committee,  or  other 
like  body  in  any  city,  town,  or  township  in  the  State  shall  certify  to 
the  governor  that  a  sum  of  money  not  less  than  $3,000  has  been 
raised,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  governor  to  cause  to  be  drawn  by 
warrant  on  the  comptroller  an  amount  equal  to  that  contributed  by 
the  particular  locality  for  the  said  object,  and  when  any  school  or 
schools  have  been  established  in  any  localities  aforesaid  there  shall 
be  annually  contributed  by  the  State  for  the  maintenance  and  sup- 
port thereof  a  sum  equal  to  that  contributed  each  year  by  said  local- 
ity for  said  purpose,  provided,  hoVever,  that  the  moneys  contributed 
by  the  State  to  any  locality  shall  not  exceed  in  any  one  year  the  sum 
of  $5,000. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  State  of  New  Jersey  helps  those  who 
help  themselves,  and  that  is  what  this  bill  designs  to  do.  It  really  is 
an  offer  on  the  part  of  the  Federal  Government  to  share  with  the 
States  in  making  offers  of  funds  to  those  cities  and  communities  which 
will  help  themselves. 

Mr.  H.  E.  Miles,  chairman  of  the  committee  on  industrial  educa- 
tion of  the  National  Association  of  Manufacturers,  in  an  address  on 
vocational  education,  speaks  of  America  as  being  likened  to  a  huge 
stevedore  bearing  down  to  the  ships  of  the  sea  the  crude  or  semicrude 
material  for  the  use  of  the  capital,  labor,  and  intelligence  of  foreign 
nations.  These  export ations  are  a  depletion  of  our  national  re- 
sources, the  heritage  of  the  ages,  and  are  irreplaceable.  We  now  see 
that  under  present  processes  those  resources  will  be  exhausted  within 
a  period  that  to  the  farsighted  is  as  a  day.  We  sell  our  cotton  to 
Switzerland  at  14  cents  per  pound  with  scarce  any  labor  in  it;  we 
buy  it  back  in  the  form  of  fine  handkerchiefs  at  $40  per  pound,  nearly 
all  labor. 

The  extent  to  which  we  may  change  these  conditions  by  increasing 
the  efficiency  of  the  rising  generation  through  industrial  education 
will  measure  the  degree  or  prosperity  and  progress  which  this  coun- 
try is  in  the  future  to  enjoy  in  its  struggle  for  commercial  supremacy. 

No  nation  approaches  us  in  inventive  genius,  none  in  natural  push 
and  vigor;  and  if  we  will  stop  thinking  in  small  sizes  for  a  brief 
period  while  we  start  on  an  upward  trend  the  generation  now  coming 
upon  the  stage  of  action,  by  the  use  of  that  efficiency  which  comes 
from  a  better  and  more  practical  education,  we  can  distance  the 
world. 

The  official  figures  just  issued  by  the  Census  Bureau  show  that  we 
increased  our  manufactured  products  from  fourteen  billions  in  1904 
to  twenty  billions  six  hundred  millions  in  1909 — a  gain  of  40  per 
cent  in  five  years.  We  increased  the  number  of  our  manufacturing 
establishments  from  216,118  in  1904  to  268,491  in  1909.  We  increased 
the  capital  invested  in  manufacturing  these  products  $5,700,000,000 
in  these  five  years.  We  increased  the  number  of  our  wage  earners  21 
49159— S.  Doc.  845,  62-2 1 


50  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

per  cent  in  that  time,  and,  best  of  all,  it  may  be  said  that  while  we 
increased  the  number  only  21  per  cent,  we  increased  the  wages  31 
per  cent.  . 

Dr.  Schwedtman,  president  of  the  Citizens'  Industrial  Association, 
of  St.  Louis,  says : 

We  have  every  reason  to  be  gratified  with  our  showing ;  but  the  greatest  value 
of  past  records  of  patriotic,  progressive,  and  ambitious  men  is  this — they  pro- 
vide a  standard  for  the  future.  Standing  still  is  impossible.  We  must  go  back- 
ward or  forward.  The  record  of  the  past  five  years  must  be  surpassed  by  that 
of  the  next  five  years. 

But,  in  his  judgment,  we  now  strike  an  economic  fact  which  must 
be  carefully  considered.  He  says  that  while  in  the  past  much  of  our 
industrial  growth  has  been  accomplished  by  increase  of  industrial 
territory,  increase  of  raw  material,  and  added  immigration  of  skilled 
foreign  mechanics,  we  must  look  for  our  future  progress  principally 
to  higher  efficiency  in  our  shops,  to  higher  grade  of  output,  to  a  better 
grade  of  American  mechanics.  W&  must  export  less  pig  iron  and 
more  sewing  machines,  less  steel  billets  and  more  watch  springs,  less 
copper  and  more  dynamos. 

It  has  been  truly  said  that  the  man  deserves  well  of  his  country 
who  makes  two  blades  of  grass  grow  where  one  grew  before.  Is  this 
not  equally  true  of  men  who  turn  raw-cotton  exports  at  14  cents  per 
pound  into  fine  handkerchiefs  at  $40  per  pound  ? 

Mr.  President,  only  38  per  cent  of  the  population  of  the  United 
States  are  breadwinners.  Fifty-five  per  cent  of  the  Austrian  popu- 
lation, 53  per  cent  of  the  Italian  population,  and  48  per  cent  of  the 
French  population  are  breadwinners. 

We  must  convert  the  idlers  of  this  Nation  into  producers ;  and,  in 
my  judgment,  we  may  do  so  if  we  will  take  the  hundreds  of  thousands 
of  boys,  now  almost  running  wild  in  our  larger  cities,  and,  by  indus- 
trial education,  by  instruction  along  the  lines  of  the  trades  and 
industries,  and  by  finding  them  places  to  labor,  turn  them  from  vicious 
paths  into  self-respecting,  self-supporting,  contented  producers. 

In  England  the  percentage  of  population  engaged  in  manufactur- 
ing, mining,  trade,  and  commerce  is  64 ;  in  the  United  States  it  is  only 
40.  Is  it  not  our  duty  to  provide  for  this  additional  24  per  cent  of 
our  population  by  converting  them  from  consumers  to  producers  ? 

The  United  States  produces  approximately  5,500,000,000  pounds  of 
cotton  annually,  but  we  manufacture  only  2,000,000,000  pounds  of 
that  cotton  into  finished  products.  England  produces  in  India 
1,350,000,000  pounds  of  cotton,  but  she  manufactures  approximately 
2,250,000,000  pounds  into  finished  articles.  If  we  figure  raw  cotton 
at  15  cents  per  pound  and  finished  cotton  products  at  30  cents  per 
pound,  we  have  a  difference  of  $525,000,000  annually  which  might  be 
paid  to  skilled  workers  in  the  United  States,  which  now  goes  to  the 
skilled  workers  of  England  and  other  countries. 

We  appropriate  millions  of  dollars  every  session  the  benefits  of 
which  are  largely  local,  but  the  benefits  of  the  appropriations  flowing 
from  this  bill  will  reach  every  city,  town,  village,  and  hamlet,  and 
practically  every  child  resident  therein.  And  yet,  Mr.  President,  the 
time  will  never  come  when  the  appropriations  under  this  bill  will 
aggregate  at  their  maximum  more  than  1J  cents  per  month  per  capita 
01  our  population. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  51 

In  1916  our  population  will  be  more  than  100,000,000,  and  if  the 
total  appropriations  under  the  bill  at  that  time  were  to  reach  $15,- 
000,000 — and  they  will  not—it  can  be  seen  at  a  glance  that  the  per 
capita  expense  to  the  American  people  under  its  provisions  would  be 
only  15  cents  per  annum.  Think  of  it,  Mr.  President.  We  shall  have 
given  to  every  one  of  the  sons  of  the  toilers  of  this  country  an  oppor- 
tunity to  acquire  an  education,  which  shall  make  us  a  Nation  of  more 
efficient  producers,  of  more  self-respecting,  more  contented,  more 
happy  men  and  women,  and  consequently  a  Nation  of  better  and  more 
law-abiding  citizens,  and  that,  too,  by  an  annual  appropriation  from 
the  National  Treasury  of  only  15  cents  per  capita  of  our  population. 

HOME   ECONOMICS. 

Mr.  President,  I  shall  now  devote  a  few  moments  to  the  question 
of  home  economics,  although  I  have  given  to  the  subject  a  somewhat 
less  extended  examination,  perhaps,  than  I  ought  to  be  qualified  to 
speak  interestingly  upon  it. 

I  have,  however,  proceeded  far  enough  in  my  investigations  to 
become  fully  satisfied  that  the  education  of  our  girls  along  the  lines 
of  the  trades  and  industries  and  in  home  making  as  contemplated  by 
this  bill  is  one  of  the  most  important  economic  problems  now  before 
the  American  people. 

Mr.  President,  I  have  never  taken  pains  to  figure  out  just  what 
part  of  the  funds  appropriated  by  this  bill  would  be  used  for  the 
benefit  of  home  making,  but  I  have  asked  prominent  educators  how 
they  thought  the  bill  would  work  out,  and  they  have  expressed  the 
opinion  that  of  the  nine  millions  appropriated — three  millions  for 
the  separate  schools  in  cities^  three  millions  for  the  industrial  schools 
connected  with  the  high  schools,  and  three  millions  for  the  district 
agricultural  schools — about  25  per  cent  would  probably  find  its  way 
into  the  field  of  home  economics  for  the  education  of  girls. 

Home  economics  or  the  science  of  home  making  is  a  much  more 
comprehensive  term  than  one  would  believe  who  has  not  given  the 
matter  some  thought.  Broadly  speaking,  it  refers  to  the  improve- 
ment of  the  conditions  of  home  life,  but  the  avenues  through  which 
this  improvement  comes  are  many. 

Primarily  they  include  cooking,  sewing,  making  articles  of  house- 
hold use,  vegetable  gardening,  home  nursing,  care  of  children,  and 
so  forth. 

But  these  are  only  the  elementary  studies,  and  the  girl  who  would 
fit  herself  to  be  a  true  home  maker  should  understand  the  preparation 
of  foods  for  invalids,  first  aid  to  the  injured,  the  value  of  foods  that 
enter  into  daily  consumption,  and  how  to  buy  them  so  as  to  eliminate 
waste.  She  should  understand  ventilation,  hygiene,  physiology  ^  the 
prevention  of  preventable  diseases,  serving  of  dinners,  laundry  work, 
house  planning,  millinery,  making  her  own  clothing,  art  needlework, 
household  decoration,  household  bookkeeping.  Indeed,  her  studies 
should  cover  that  broad  field  which  will  fit  the  girl  to  prudently  and 
economically  manage  household  affairs  when  she  becomes  a  wife  and 
mother,  and  to  have  such  an  understanding  of  household  administra- 
tion as  will  enable  her  to  eliminate  waste  and  plan  prudently,  as  one 
must  do  who  provides  for  and  presides  over  the  household  and  has 
to  do  largely  with  the  family  living  expenses. 


52  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

Mr.  President,  the  difference  between  the  girl  who  leaves  school  on 
the  completion  of  the  seventh  or  eighth  grade  without  any  knowledge 
of  these  practical  affairs  of  life,  and  the  one  whose  school  life  has 
been  prolonged  for  an  added  year  or  two  in  the  study  of  home 
economics  is  very  often  the  difference  between  success  and  failure  as 
a  wife  and  mother. 

A  good,  well-kept  home,  presided  over  by  an  intelligent  woman, 
educated  along  both  general  and  practical  lines,  means  health,  happi- 
ness, prosperity,  with  healthy  children  and  all  those  essentials  which 
maJke  life  worth  living. 

The  country  is  fast  awakening  to  the  fact  that  probably  50  per 
cent  of  all  divorces  would  have  been  avoided  had  the  girls  been  good 
cooks,  good  home  makers,  and  good  mothers.  The  country  is  also 
awakening  to  the  fact  that  infant  mortality  is  largely  owing  to  lack 
of  that  knowledge  touching  motherhood  which  ought  to  be  better 
understood  in  all  our  homes. 

Fifty  years  ago  every  girl  believed  her  proper  calling  in  life  was 
to  become  a  good  home  maker,  wife,  and  mother.  To-day  they  look 
forward  to  a  position  in  some  trade  or  industry,  or,  perhaps,  to  office 
work  as  stenographers,  typewriters,  or  telephone  girls.  And  when — 
as  is  usually  the  case — they  find  themselves  brought  face  to  face  with 
married  life  and  the  home,  they  fail  to  bring  to  the  discharge  of  the 
wifely  and  motherly  duties  that  experience,  skill,  and  knowledge  so 
absolutely  essential  to  a  good  home  maker. 

The  picture  is  an  unpleasant  one,  Mr.  President.  It  is  one  which 
affords  no  gratification  to  a  student  of  public  affairs.  The  results  are 
that  in  too  many  instances  home  life  is  unendurable,  and  year  by 
year  more  and  more  do  the  divorce  courts  show  the  results.  We  must 
give  our  girls  a  training  different  from  that  with  which  we  now  pro- 
vide them,  for  if  we  do  not,  and  if  race  suicide  and  divorces  continue 
to  increase  as  they  have  for  the  past  25  years,  our  social  conditions 
will  become  unbearable. 

What  greater  problem  confronts  us  to-day  than  the  health  of  our 
people,  and  especially  the  health  of  the  young?  And  who  does  not 
know  that  it  is  only  by  that  better  knowledge  of  sanitation,  hygiene, 
cooking,  and  ventilation  gained  by  an  education  in  home  economics 
that  we  can  give  the  rising  generation  a  higher  standard  of  health  and 
physical  force?  We  must  come  to  realize  that  a  sound  mind  in  a 
sound  body  is  one  of  the  essential  prerequisites  of  wholesome,  forceful 
manhood  or  womanhood. 

I  rejoice  in  the  fact  that  home  economics  is  rapidly  assuming  the 
prominent  place  which  it  deserves  in  all  schools  which  girls  attend, 
from  the  elementary  to  the  collegiate.  This  bill,  if  it  passes,  will 
generally  accelerate  this  essential  movement  toward  better  home  mak- 
ing, and  mothers  who  are  bringing  up  the  rising  generation  in  con- 
formity with  the  laws  of  health  will  be  accorded  a  higher  status  in  the 
social  ranks  of  American  women. 

It  is  a  most  regrettable  fact  that  by  far  too  large  a  portion  of 
our  American  girls  are  not  good  housekeepers  and  are  lamentably 
ignorant  of  the  duties  of  motherhood.  We  might  profitably  consider 
this  great  proposition  along  other  and  collateral  lines,  including  the 
great  question  of  race  suicide,  but  I  hesitate  to  discuss  this  problem 
here.  A  mere  reference  to  it  ought  to  bring  a  blush  to  the  cheek  of 
every  student  of  our  social  conditions. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  63 

Mr.  President,  the  American  School  of  Home  Economics  has  very 
forcefully  expressed  its  disapproval  of  our  great  economic  waste  in 
the  matter  of  our  home  management.  It  says  that  $10,000,000,000 
are  expended  annually  in  the  United  States  for  food,  clothing,  and 
shelter,  when,  with  greater  knowledge  and  efficiency,  better  satisfac- 
tion could  be  obtained  and  $1,000,000,000  saved  for  higher  things. 

Half  a  million  lives  are  cut  short  and  5,000,000  people  are  made  ill 
by  preventable  diseases  every  year.  With  universal  knowledge  of 
hygiene  and  sanitation  nearly  all  deaths  and  illness  from  such  causes 
could  be  prevented. 

Six  hundred  thousand  infants  under  2  years  of  age  end  their  little 
span  of  life  yearly,  while  millions  of  children  fail  to  reach  their  best 
physical  development,  because  their  mothers  and  fathers  do  not 
understand  how  to  care  for  them  in  the  light  of  science.  With  more 
knowledge  at  least  half  these  babies  could  be  saved  and  the  physical 
standard  raised  immeasurably. 

I  will  ask  permission  at  this  point  to  insert  a  clipping  from  the 
Washington  Post  of  June  4,  1912. 

The  VICE  PRESIDENT.  In  the  absence  of  objection  permission  is 
granted. 

The  clipping  referred  to  is  as  follows : 

TWO    HUNDRED    THOUSAND    LIVE    BUT    A    MONTH — OF    BABIES    WHO    PERISH    YEABLY, 
FIFTEEN   THOUSAND   ARE   BORN    IN    NEW    YORK. 

NEW  YORK,  June  8. 

Two  hundred  thousand  infants  die  every  year  in  the  United  States  before  com- 
pleting the  first  month  of  life,  of  which  number  15,000  are  born  in  New  York 
City.  This  statement  was  made  to-day  during  a  meeting  called  to  start  a  new 
campaign  of  infant  welfare  in  this  city. 

It  was  decided  to  call  a  meeting  for  next  Monday  afternoon,  to  which  will  be 
invited  representatives  of  all  hospitals,  dispensaries,  and  similar  institutions  in 
New  York. 

It  will  be  proposed  that  there  be  established  a  central  office  in  the  health 
department  building,  which  will  be  a  clearing  house  for  all  work  intended  to  aid 
infants.  This  will  not  interfere  with  the  integrity  or  independence  of  any  one 
of  the  individual  organizations. 

Mr.  PAGE.  Mr.  President,  thousands  of  homes  are  wrecked,  tens  of 
thousands  of  lives  ruined,  and  hundreds  of  thousands  are  made  un- 
happy because  the  home-keepers  of  our  country  have  no  training  in 
that  greatest  of  all  professions,  the  "  profession  of  home  making 
and  motherhood."  All  must  live  in  some  sort  of  a  home,  for  every- 
one finds  his  chief  happiness  there.  Character  is  developed  there. 
No  great  advance,  spiritual  or  mental,  is  possible  which  does  not  begin 
with  the  home.  The  home  makers  of  America  have  the  making  of 
the  Nation.  Every  girl  is  a  potential  mother.  Every  mother  should 
be  a  home  maker.  Every  girl  should  have  the  best  of  health,  some 
knowledge  of  her  peculiar  functions,  some  specific  preparation  for 
playing  her  part  in  the  best  possible  home. 

Society  must  come  to  recognize  that  woman's  work  is  to  promote 
the  best  possibilities  of  the  next  generation.  Let  us  at  least  be  as 
sensible  with  reference  to  the  health  of  the  woman  who  bears  the  child 
as  we  are  with  reference  to  the  breeding  of  stock. 

There  is  such  a  close  connection  between  home  economics  and  the 
education  of  women  for  industrial  pursuits  that  we  hardly  know 
where  one  leaves  off  and  the  other  begins ;  but  this  bill  provides  edu- 


54  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

cation  for  them  in  both  relations.  The  young  girl  in  the  city  must 
not  only  earn  a  livelihood  at  some  manual  traole,  but  must  broaden 
somewhat  her  field  of  general  knowledge.  This  she  is  able  to  do  by 
the  separate  industrial  schools  provided  for  in  section  4  of  this  bill. 
Indeed,  it  is  presumed  that  the  appropriation  made  by  section  3  for 
a  separate  division  in  the  village  high  school  will  afford  the  girl  who 
must  earn  a  livelihood  after  she  leaves  the  grammar  school  and  before 
she  becomes  a  wife  a  fair  equipment  for  such  branches  of  special 
service  away  from  the  home  as  she  may  find  it  necessary  or  convenient 
to  enter.  That  this  special  training  for  the  girl  works  out  practically 
is  shown  by  the  examination  of  some  of  the  schools  which  have  under- 
taken this  class  of  work. 

For  instance,  the  Manhattan — New  York  City— Trade  School  for 
Girls  began  its  work  in  1902  under  the  inspiration  of  a  group  of  men 
and  women  interested  in  philanthropic,  sociological,  economic,  and 
educational  work.  They  found  upon  examination  that  the  wages  of 
unskilled  female  labor  were  declining,  while  those  of  skilled  labor 
were  advancing,  and  that  the  supply  of  skilled  labor  was  inadequate. 
They  reached  the  conclusion  that  the  condition  of  the  young  and 
inexpert  working  girl  must  be  ameliorated  in  some  way. 

The  principles  of  the  school,  as  laid  down  by  its  organizers,  were  to 
improve  the  worker  physically,  mentally,  morally,  and  financially ;  to 
better  the  conditions  of  labor  in  the  workroom,  and  to  raise  the  char- 
acter of  the  industries  and  the  conditions  of  the  home. 

It  was  not  expected  that  immature  girls  of  14  or  15  years  of  age 
would,  immediately  upon  entering  the  labor  market,  make  large  sal- 
aries, but  the  purpose  was  to  educate  these  girls  for  situations  for 
which  their  qualifications  best  fitted  them,  and  to  make  possible  a 
steady  advance  to  better  occupations,  better  wages,  and  a  better  life. 

Here  is  just  a  brief  statement  as  to  five  of  the  different  occupations 
taught  at  this  school  and  the  improved  financial  change  which 
resulted : 

In  dressmaking  the  girls  started  at  $3  to  $5  per  week ;  after  train- 
ing in  the  Manhattan  school  they  were  able  to  earn  $5  to  $12  per 
week.  In  millinery  the  girls  started  at  $2.50  to  $4  per  week;  after 
training  they  received  from  $4  to  $10  per  week.  In  operating  ma- 
chines the  girls  started  at  from  $3  to  $6  per  week;  and  after  train- 
ing they  received  from  $5  to  $30  per  week.  In  novelty  work  the 
girls  started  with  wages  from  $3  to  $5  per  week ;  after  training  they 
earned  from  $6  to  $10  per  week.  In  what  is  known  as  "  trade  art " 
the  wages  of  the  girls  at  the  start  were  from  $5  to  $8  per  week ;  and 
after  training  they  increased  from  $8  to  $15  per  week. 

These  schools  in  New  York  have  what  are  called  "  night  continua- 
tion classes,"  and  an  examination  shows  that  the  classes  are  not  only 
well  attended,  but  that  the  results  are  excellent. 

The  cost  of  equipment  of  schools  to  teach  these  subjects  is  rela- 
tively not  large.  As  regards  garment  or  dress  making,  it  is  estimated 
that  a  room  for  20  workers  may  be  plainly  furnished  at  a  cost  of 
$300  to  $500. 

The  equipping  of  a  workroom  for  electric  power  operating,  includ- 
ing general  and  special  machines,  motor,  cutting  and  work  tables, 
cabinets  and  chairs,  is,  of  course,  considerably  more  expensive  than 
one  for  garment  making.  In  the  latter,  one  sewing  machine  can  be 
used  for  several  workers,  but  in  electric  operating  each  worker  must 


VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION,  55 

have  her  own  machine.  The  electric  motor  adds  also  to  the  expense. 
The  minimum  cost  of  thus  equipping  a  shop  for  20  workers  is  about 
$1,000  to  $1,500. 

Arthur  D.  Dean,  chief  of  the  division  of  vocational  schools  of  the 
State  department  of  education  of  New  York,  says : 

We  are  only  at  the  beginning  of  a  new  conception  of  woman  and  her  work. 
She  will  be  educated  only  as  she  is  master  of  herself  and  master  of  her  job — 
master  of  herself  in  the  sense  that  she  must  know  of  her  possibilities  as  a 
woman  of  splendid  health,  of  personal  power,  and  of  genuine  poise ;  master  of 
her  job  only  as  she  is  fitted  for  a  God-given  motherhood  and  a  community- 
given  vocation. 

Charles  Wagner  says : 

The  more  a  woman  shall  have  learned  to  live  by  herself  the  better  she  will 
occupy  her  position  in  wedded  life  should  she  marry.  Trained  to  direct  her- 
self, to  earn  her  own  living,  capable  of  energy  and  decision,  a  woman,  if  she 
marries,  brings  a  precious  cooperation  to  her  husband.  If  she  never  marries 
she  will  know  how  to  be  all-sufficient  to  herself.  She  will  not  believe  her  life 
lost  nor  make  of  it  a  morbid  matter. 

I  believe  Senators  make  a  great  mistake  when  they  underestimate 
the  benefits  which  will  flow  from  that  part  of  this  bill  which  pertains 
to  home  economics.  I  have  become  intensely  interested  in  it,  and 
the  more  I  study  it,  the  more  I  think  it  is  one  of  the  great  features  of 
this  bill. 

GOOD   CITIZENSHIP. 

Mr.  President,  I  wish  I  might  say  that  no  Senators  were  objecting 
to  this  bill,  but  I  can  not.  There  are  a  few  who  urge  its  expense  as 
sufficient  reason  for  opposing  the  measure,  while  others  urge  its  un- 
constitutionally. The  latter  insist  that  there  is  no  warrant  in  the 
Federal  Constitution  for  the  cooperation  of  the  Federal  Government 
with  the  States  in  matters  of  education,  and  for  this  reason  say  this 
bill  should  not  pass. 

I  am  not  a  lawyer  and  speak  only  as  a  layman,  but  it  seems  to  me 
that  if  there  is  any  one  matter  upon  which  Congress — and,  indeed, 
the  great  American  people — have  passed  repeatedly  and  affirmatively, 
it  is  the  question  of  the  constitutionality  of  Federal  aid  to  education. 

In  discussing  this  matter  of  constitutionality  with  a  Senator  who 
has  had  a  very  long  experience  in  congressional  life,  he  made  this 
answer  to  my  suggestion : 

Senator,  I  did  believe  that  if  any  State  wished  to  secede  from  the  Federal 
Union  it  had  the  constitutional  right  to  do  so.  Perhaps  I  might  truthfully  say 
that  I  so  believe  at  this  time,  but  this  matter  was  decided  in  1865  once  and  for 
all  time.  The  question  of  the  constitutionality  of  Federal  aid  to  the  cause  of 
agricultural  and  industrial  education  was  decided  in  1862.  That  decision  has 
been  again  and  again  reaffirmed.  I  have  no  desire  to  reopen  the  question  at 
this  time. 

During  the  Sixty-first  Congress,  acting  in  conformity  with  a  de- 
mand from  the  American  people  which  was  simply  irresistible,  we 
practically  went  into  the  banking  business  by  establishing  postal  sav- 
ings banks  and  borrowing  money  from  the  American  public  to  reloan 
to  the  banks  of  the  country.  No  one  has  claimed  that  there  is  any 
express  warrant  in  the  Constitution  for  this  legislation,  but  the 
measure  is  meeting  the  approval  of  the  American  people,  and  no  one 
to-day  thinks  of  repealing  the  postal  savings  bank  act  or  of  raising 
the  question  of  its  constitutionality. 


56  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

It  seems  now  probable  that,  acting  in  conformity  with  a  demand 
that  is  almost  equally  irresistible,  we  are  about  to  go  into  the  express 
business  through  the  medium  of  the  parcel  post,  and  I  imagine  that 
if  that  accessory  to  our  Post  Office  Department  shall  prove  to  be  a 
financial  success  no  one  will  be  heard  to  question  that  legislation  be- 
cause of  its  unconstitutionally. 

Mr.  President,  if  there  is  any  act  upon  our  statute  books  to  which 
the  people  of  this  land  have  given  their  most  hearty  approval  it  is  the 
Merrill  Act  of  1862.  Congress  has  reaffirmed  that  approval  again 
and  again,  first  by  the  Hatch  Act  of  1887,  appropriating  $15,000 
annually  to  each  State  for  experiment  stations,  then  by  the  second 
Morrill  Act  of  1890,  giving  an  additional  $25,000  annually  to  each 
State  for  the  benefit  of  the  agricultural  colleges  established  by  the 
original  Morrill  Act.  It  was  again  reaffirmed  in  1906  by  the  Adams 
Act,  which  doubled  the  appropriation  under  the  Hatch  Act  by  giving 
an  additional  $15,000  annually  to  each  State  for  these  same  agricul- 
tural colleges  and  State  experiment  stations;  and  no  later  than  1907 
it  was  further  reaffirmed  by  what  is  known  as  the  Nelson  amendment, 
offered  by  the  distinguished  senior  Senator  from  Minnesota,  by  which 
was  added  another  $25,000  per  annum  to  the  agricultural  college  fund 
of  each  State.  These  four  appropriations  supplemented  the  original 
Morrill  Act  by  giving  to  each  State  $80,000  per  annum  additional. 

Kemember  that  the  original  Morrill  Act  was  passed  in  1862,  at  a 
time  when  we  were  in  the  throes  of  the  Civil  War,  and  when  the  bur- 
dons  of  the  Government  were  infinitely  larger  than  they  are  to-day. 
We  took  our  new  departure  on  these  lines  then  and  decided  that  the 
general  welfare  was  so  dependent  upon  industrial  and  agricultural 
education  that  we  might  well  lead  the  way  in  that  great  work. 

The  new  departure  taken  in  vocational  education  in  1862  has 
worked  wonders  in  the  way  of  giving  to  the  country  an  army  of 
trained  specialists  in  agriculture,  engineering,  and  home  economics. 
This  skeleton  army  has  laid  the  foundation  for  the  larger,  broader 
work  which  by  this  measure  we  seek  to  accomplish.  Without  these 
trained  specialists  we  should  be  in  a  condition  of  unpreparedness 
which  would  be  absolutely  deplorable.  As  it  is,  we  are  now  ready  to 
go  on  with  the  broader  work ;  and  the  great  American  people  now  in- 
sist that  we  do  go  on  with  it  in  some  such  manner  as  is  outlined  by 
Senate  bill  No.  3,  now  before  us. 

Mr.  President,  I  do  not  think  I  can  be  mistaken  in  regard  to  the 
attitude  of  the  country  with  reference  to  the  better  education  of  our 
boys  and  girls  along  agricultural  and  industrial  lines.  I  wish  Sen- 
ators might  have  been  associated  with  this  work  as  I  have  been  during 
the  past  14  months,  for  I  am  sure  if  they  had  been  they  would  realize 
more  fully  than  they  now  do  the  intense  interest  which  prevails 
throughout  every  section  of  the  country — East,  West,  North,  and 
South — on  this  great  question. 

This  movement  for  vocational  education  is  not  confined  to  any  one 
section  nor  to  any  class  of  people,  but  has  taken  deep  hold  upon  our 
agricultural,  our  commercial,  and  our  manufacturing  population. 
There  is  scarcely  an  important  organization  in  this  country,  which  has 
for  its  object  the  uplift  and  betterment  of  our  people,  that  has  not 
considered  this  particular  bill — Senate  bill  No.  3 — and,  by  specific 
resolution,  approved  it,  usually  in  its  entirety,  but  always  as  to  its 
fundamentals.  There  is  scarcely  one  of  the  great  educational  organ- 


VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION.  57 

izations  of  this  country  which  has  not  passed  upon  this  bill,  and, 
barring  some  of  its  administrative  features  and  some  of  the  diffi- 
culties of  its  articulation  with  State  laws,  approved  it  unqualifiedly 
and  enthusiastically. 

It  occurs  to  me  that  there  is  no  impropriety  in  reading  to  the  Senate 
the  resolutions  of  a  few  of  the  more  important  of  these  organizations 
and  associations  which,  in  convention,  have  made  this  bill  the  subject 
of  debate  and  have  passed  resolutions  indorsing  it. 

The  National  Grange  is  one  of  the  most  important  organizations 
which  speaks  for  agriculture.  It  is  the  recognized  mouthpiece  of  a 
very  large  body  of  the  farmers  of  this  country.  At  its  annual  meet- 
ing at  Columbus,  Ohio,  last  fall,  it  passed  the  following  resolution : 

Resolved,  That  the  National  Grange,  in  its  forty-fifth  annual  session  assem- 
bled, does  hereby  indorse  the  Page  bill — Senate  bill  3— to  provide  for  vocational 
education  in  secondary  schools,  the  training  of  teachers  for  these  schools, 
agricultural  extension,  and  agricultural  demonstration. 

The  International  Dry  Farming  Congress  is  an  organization  whose 
special  field  of  labor  is  in  the  semiarid  regions  of  the  trans-Mississippi 
States.  I  am  told  by  Senators  from  the  intermountain  States  that 
the  organization  is  helping  to  successfully  solve  the  great  dry-farming 
problem  which  is  being  worked  out  to-day  in  those  sections  of  our 
country  which  have  very  little  rainfall. 

That  congress,  at  its  annual  gathering  at  Colorado  Springs  in 
October  last,  unanimously  adopted  the  following  resolution  with 
reference  to  Federal  aid  for  industrial  education : 

This  congress  reiterates  the  conviction  voiced  by  former  congresses  in  favor  of 
financial  Federal  aid  for  rural  education  and  agricultural  extension,  the  same 
to  be  expended  exclusively  by  the  several  States  in  the  interests  of  agriculture, 
home  economics,  and  the  mechanic  arts,  and  for  preparing  teachers  for  the 
same.  *  *  *  This  congress  urges  upon  its  members  that  they  use  all  legiti- 
mate influence  to  the  end  that  the  coming  session  of  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States  may  witness  the  enactment  into  law  of  a  comprehensive  plan  for  agri- 
cultural and  vocational  education  and  training  in  the  common  and  high  schools. 

While  this  dry-farming  congress  makes  its  special  work  the  im- 
proved methods  of  tilling  arid  lands,  its  members  interest  themselves 
generally  in  those  educational  matters  which  are  supposed  to  be  for 
the  general  welfare. 

Among  the  subjects  especially  considered  by  that  congress  was  that 
of  woman's  work — the  home  and  home  economics ;  and  since  this  con- 
stitutes an  important  feature  of  this  bill,  I  wish  to  read  the  resolu- 
tion of  this  organization  touching  home  making : 

Realizing  that  the  results  of  agricultural  education  during  the  past  two  decades 
have  demonstrated  the  equal  importance  of  the  education  of  the  farm  women 
along  parallel  lines  with  the  education  of  the  farmer,  and  also  realizing  the 
importance  of  the  carrying  forward  of  agricultural  propaganda,  in  so  far  as  it 
relates  to  the  establishment  of  happy,  contented  homes  on  all  farms,  *  *  * 
this  congress  heartily  indorses  the  bill  now  pending  before  the  United  States 
Senate  which  provides  for  a  permanent  annual  appropriation  to  each  State 
experiment  station  for  the  purpose  of  conducting  original  or  confirmatory 
experiments  dealing  with  the  whole  field  of  home  economics,  and  requests  our 
respective  Senators  and  Representatives  to  urge  this  bill  for  early  passage. 

There  is  a  very  strong  organization  in  the  South,  known  as  the 
American  Education  and  Cooperative  Farmers'  Union,  and  an- 
other— of  perhaps  equal  or  greater  strength — the  American  Society 
of  Equity.  It  is  said  that  the  two  together  represent  several  million 
farmers. 


58  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

I  do  not  know  how  they  compare  in  importance  with  the  National 
Grange,  but  I  imagine  that  they  are  to  the  South  what  the  National 
Grange  is  to  the  North.  I  shall  not' read  their  resolutions,  but  will 
simply  state  that  at  the  joint  meeting  of  these  two  organizations 
they  passed  resolutions  approving  the  provisions  of  this  vocational 
education  bill  and  earnestly  urged  the  Members  of  the  National 
Senate  and  House  of  Kepresentatives  to  favor  its  passage. 

The  International  Congress  of  Farm  Women  is  another  organiza- 
tion which  is  quite  active  in  some  sections  of  the  country,  and  at  their 
last  annual  gathering  they  passed  the  following  resolution : 

Resolved,  That  this  congress  indorses  the  vocational-education  bill  now  pend- 
ing in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  whereby  the  States  and  Nation  may 
combine  in  a  comprehensive  plan  of  effective  vocational  training  in  secondary 
schools,  through  which  the  rural  elementary  schools  may  be  benefited. 

The  National  Association  of  Manufacturers  is  one  of  the  strongest 
organizations  in  this  country  devoted  to  the  improvement  of  indus- 
trial conditions.  It  is  constantly  entering  new  fields  of  labor  in  a 
philanthropic  way.  At  its  last  annual  meeting  held  in  New  York 
City  it  passed  the  following  resolution  with  reference  to  industrial 
education : 

That  this  association  earnestly  devote  itself,  with  reasonable  outlay  of  funds, 
to  the  promotion  of  industrial  education,  to  the  end  that  such  education  may  be 
made  available,  as  soon  as  possible,  to  every  child  who  needs  it. 

Resolved,  That  we  favor  the  establishment  in  every  community  of  continua- 
tion schools  wherein  the  children  of  14  to  18  years  of  age,  now  in  the  industries, 
shall  be  instructed  in  the  science  and  art  of  their  respective  industries  and  in 
citizenship. 

The  National  Educational  Association,  at  its  convention  held  in 
Boston  some  time  ago,  passed  the  following  resolution  by  a  unanimous 
vote: 

That  while  the  members  of  this  association  are  of  the  opinion  that  the  old 
courses  of  study,  which  had  as  their  chief  object  the  giving  of  culture  to  the 
individual  and  of  transmitting  to  him  the  best  ideas  and  ideals  of  the  past, 
should  in  no  manner  be  weakened,  we  nevertheless,  very  sincerely  indorse 
the  movement  to  make  the  courses  of  study  offered  in  our  schools  more  demo- 
cratic, that  they  may  meet  the  condition  of  our  modern  commercial  and  indus- 
trial life.  However,  to  meet  adequately  these  new  demands  imposes  upon  the 
schools  of  the  country  additional  financial  responsibilities,  and  this  association 
appeals  to  the  Nation  and  to  the  States  for  more  liberal  appropriations  for 
educational  purposes  in  order  that  this  additional  work  in  agriculture,  in  the 
trades  and  industries,  and  home  economics  may  be  effectively  undertaken. 

The  Southern  Educational  Association,  a  very  important  factor 
in  educational  life  in  the  South,  covering  the  Southern  States,  at  a 
meeting  at  Houston,  Tex.,  unqualifiedly  indorsed  this  bill. 

I  have  stated  that  agricultural,  industrial,  labor,  and  manufac- 
turers' associations  are  demanding  the  passage  of  this  bill.  I  might 
add  that  boards  of  trade,  federations  of  women's  clubs,  the  National 
Metal  Trades  Association,  the  National  Association  of  Builders'  Ex- 
changes, the  American  Institute  of  Electrical  Engineers,  the  Ameri- 
can Society  of  Mechanical  Engineers,  the  International  Typograph- 
ical Union,  the  Young  Men's  and  Young  Women's  Christian  Associa- 
tions, and  a  very  large  number  of  other  National,  State  and  local 
associations,  have  indorsed  this  measure. 

They  cover  all  sections  of  the  Union,  and  I  shall  take  great  pleasure 
in  showing  them  to  any  Senator  who  feels  interested  to  know  the 
attitude  of  organizations  in  his  own  immediate  section  of  the  country. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  59 

If  there  is  any  association  connected  with  or  especially  interested  in 
educational  work  anywhere  in  this  country  which  does  not  earnestly 
and  enthusiastically  indorse  the  great  principle  of  vocational  edu- 
cation sought  to  be  worked  out  by  this  bill,  I  am  not  aware  of  it. 

It  is  not  best  that  I  further  take  the  time  of  the  Senate  by  quoting 
from  resolutions  and  letters  from  distinguished  educators  and  others, 
showing  that  the  country  is  thoroughly  alive  to  and  very  deeply  in- 
terested in  its  support  of  this  great  educational  measure;  but,  with 
the  consent  of  the  Senate,  I  will  include  them  as  an  appendix  to  my 
remarks. 

Let  me  say  in  passing  that  they  cover  every  State  in  the  Union, 
and  collectively  they  show  beyond  doubt  or  question  that  the  Ameri- 
can people  are  in  favor  of  immediate  action  by  the  National  Congress 
on  this  important  measure,  and  in  my  opinion,  they  will  regard  any 
longer  delay  in  legislation  providing  for  cooperation  between  the 
Federal  Government  and  the  States  as  utterly  inexcusable  and  not 
in  the  line  of  true  economy. 

Mr.  President,  the  great  mass  of  our  people  are  insistent  that 
something  be  done  about  this  matter,  and  be  done  now.  The  field  is 
already  white  for  the  harvest.  I  believe  it  is  not  an  exaggeration  to 
say  that  more  than  95  per  cent  of  all  the  letters  received  by  me — and 
they  number  several  thousand — are  earnestly  commendatory  of  the 
fundamental  principles  of  the  bill,  and  that  as  a  whole  they  regard 
the  measure  more  pregnant  with  importance  to  the  welfare  of  the 
American  people  than  any  other  of  the  many  general  bills  involving 
constructive  legislation  now  before  Congress. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  greatest  act  of  Abraham  Lincoln's  life 
was  the  emancipation  proclamation,  and  that  second  only  in  impor- 
tance was  the  signing  of  the  Morrill  agricultural  college  bill.  If 
objections  on  the  ground  of  centralization,  paternalism,  and  uncon- 
stitutionally were  relegated  to  the  past  in  1862,  there  are  a  hundred 
times  as  many  reasons  why  we  should  cease  to  plead  those  objections 
now,  for  while,  as  statistics  actually  show,  the  Morrill  Act  tends  to 
give  higher  education  to  less  than  2  per  cent  of  our  boys  this  bill 
directly  affects  92  per  cent. 

But.  Mr.  President,  in  my  judgment  there  is  an  argument  in  favor 
of  this  bill  which  places  it  upon  infinitely  higher  grounds  than  any 
that  have  been  urged  or  that  can  be  urged  for  the  postal  savings  bank, 
the  parcel  post,  or  for  the  Morrill  Act,  and  that  is  the  promotion  of 
good  citizenship. 

The  laboring  men  of  this  country,  including  the  farmer,  feel  that 
their  sons  are  not  receiving  that  equality  of  opportunity  in  the 
struggle  for  life  to"  which  they  are  entitled.  They  believe  that  taxes 
are  levied  which  call  upon  them  for  a  disproportionately  large  ex- 
penditure of  money.  They  also  believe  that  these  expenditures  are 
too  largely  for  the  benefit  of  the  1.71  per  cent  who  enjoy  a  college 
course  or  the  5.35  per  cent  who  complete  only  the  high-school  course, 
while  the  other  92.93  per  cent  are  most  unfairly  neglected. 

Our  school  statistics  not  only  show  that  but  8  per  cent  of  the  chil- 
dren of  school  age  ever  reach  the  high-school  grade,  but  also  that  only 
25  per  cent  of  the  balance  ever  reach  the  eighth  or  highest  grade  in 
the  elementary  or  grammar  school.  Why  this  is  so,  I  will  discuss  later. 
For  the  time  being  I  state  the  plain  fact  as  a  justification  for  the 
other  fact  stated,  to  wit,  that  the  men  comprising  our  so-called 


60  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

working  class  feel  that  in  some  way  or  other,  and  for  reasons  which 
they  can  not  understand,  a  great  wrong  is  being  perpetrated  upon 
them  and  their  children. 

That  those  comprising  this  class  are  justified  in  viewing  the  matter 
from  this  standpoint,  I  think,  will  be  admitted  by  every  Senator  who 
will  take  the  trouble,  if  he  has  never  done  so  before,  to  recall  the  con- 
ditions actually  existing  in  the  vicinity  of  his  own  home,  as  these 
conditions  are  substantially  alike  in  every  section  of  the  country 
where  mining,  quarrying,  and  manufacturing  bring  together  aggre- 
gations of  laboring  men. 

The  pupil  struggles  along  through  his  first  six  grades  of  elementary 
school  life,  and  then  for  some  reason  he  begins  to  dislike  his  school. 
Thomas  A.  Edison,  the  great  electrician,  in  sneaking  of  this  matter 
recently,  gave  voice  to  a  thought  which  we  might  all  well  consider. 
He  said :  "  My  boy  is  an  average  boy,  but  he  hates  his  school  life." 

Mr.  Edison  was  stating  a  .concrete  fact,  touching  his  boy,  which 
applies  equally  well  to  probably  75  per  cent  of  all  the  boys  in  the 
eighth  or  highest  grade  of  the  elementary  schools.  They  hate  the 
school,  and  they  plan  and  figure  in  every  possible  way  ibo  avoid  a 
continuation  of  their  school  life. 

Mr.  President,  there  is  something  wrong  here,  and  we?  as  legisla- 
tors, must  not  shut  our  eyes  to  that  wrong,  because  it  is  pregnant 
with  an  importance^  in  my  judgment,  second  to  no  other  problem 
now  before  this  Nation.  To  continue  conditions  longer  as  they  now 
are  is  to  criminally  neglect  the  largest  asset  of  this  country,  the 
American  youth. 

I  do  not  wish  to  criticize  either  the  judgment  or  the  conscience  of 
that  great  body  of  highly  educated  men  who  stand  at  the  head  of 
our  educational  work,  and  who  are  rendering  a  noble  service  in  giving 
us  the  highly  trained  minds  that  are  annually  graduated  from  our 
higher  institutions  of  learning. 

I  do  not  wish  to  be  misunderstood  in  this  matter.  If  we  could  send 
our  boys  and  girls  through  high  school  and  to  the  college,  I  should 
feel  that  we  had  almost  reached  the  millennium.  But  we  can  not  do 
this,  and  I  believe  I  voice  the  sentiment  of  hundreds  upon  hundreds 
of  the  more  thoughtful  educators  and  publicists  of  our  land  to-day, 
who  give  it  as  their  opinion  that  the  curriculum  of  the  elementary  or 
graded  school  is  largely  impracticable  and  does  not  fit  for  the  great 
struggles  of  life  that  are  before  them  the  92  per  cent  of  our  boys  and 
girls  who  never  pass  beyond  the  eight  grades. 

I  believe  that  when  the  child  reaches  the  seventh  grade  we  should 
begin  to  take  an  account  of  stock  of  what  that  child  is.  He  should 
be  studied  physically,  mentally,  and  psychologically.  The  natural 
bent  of  his  mind  should  in  some  way  or  other  be  brought  out;  and 
when  we  have  discovered  what  that  bent  is,  we  should  continue  his 
education  along  practical  lines,  and  in  the  direction  of  his  natural 
abilities,  for  as  many  years  as  his  conditions  and  needs  warrant,  that 
we  may  make  of  him  an  efficient  worker  in  some  useful  line. 

As  it  is  to-day,  he  looks  from  the  elementary  school  to  the  cur- 
riculum of  the  first  year  of  the  high  school,  and  there  he  discovers 
Latin,  French,  geometry,  algebra.  He  goes  to  his  father  and  mother 
and  lays  his  troubles  before  them.  He  says  to  them,  "  I  don't  want  to 
learn  French,  I  don't  want  to  learn  Latin,  I  don't  want  to  study 
algebra.  They  will  never  do  me  any  good."  Nine  times  out  of  ten 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  61 

the  father  believes  with  the  child,  and  opportunities  are  too  often 
given  him  by  the  parents  to  avoid  school  life,  even  during  the  last  or 
eighth  year  of  compulsory  attendance,  and  as  soon  as  he  has  com- 
pleted the  eighth  grade  he  takes  final  leave  of  school. 

The  father  then  says  to  his  son:  "John,  you  must  this  year  earn 
enough  to  pay  for  your  own  clothing  and  to  provide  your  own  spend- 
ing money,  and  you  must  pay  your  mother  a  dollar  or  two  a  week 
toward  your  board."  With  this  injunction  the  boy  starts  out,  and, 
following  the  lines  of  least  resistance,  he  is  fortunate  indeed  if  he  does 
not  find  himself  in  that  class  in  which  statistics  tell  us  that  more  than 
40  per  cent  of  the  American  boys  in  our  large  cities  land,  viz,  in  the 
class  of  errand  boys,  bootblacks,  and  newspaper  vendors. 

What  is  the  result?  Evil  associates  surround  and  control  the  boy 
during  the  two  or  more  years  of  this  most  impressionable  period  of 
his  life,  and  on  arrival  at  the  age  when  he  is  permitted  to  enter  upon 
an  apprenticeship  or  take  up  some  employment  he  finds  that  his 
environment  has  been  such  as  to  weaken  every  higher  moral  quality. 
Instead  of  there  being  a  growth  for  the  better  from  the  fourteenth  to 
the  seventeenth  year,  he  has  actually  been  allowed  to  degenerate; 
whereas,  had  these  years  been  spent  in  part  in  some  vocational  school 
where  he  was  learning  the  fundamentals  of  that  trade  or  calling 
which  he  has  elected  to  pursue,  he  would  not  have  found  himself 
where  he  must,  on  entering  the  workshop,  take  his  place  alongside 
the  cheapest,  lowest  illiterate  from  some  foreign  land. 

Men  like  to  do  that  which  they  can  do  well.  Place  a  boy  in  a 
position  where  he  must  work  in  the  lowest  grade  of  the  establish- 
ment with  which  he  is  connected,  and  work  to  him  is  drudgery.  Give 
him  such  work  as  a  year  or  two  of  education  along  vocational  lines 
would  have  permitted  him  to  do,  and  all  is  changed.  He  sees  not  only 
a  higher  wage,  but  he  sees  promotion,  preferment,  and  honors.  The 
boy  who  has  been  drifting  downward  from  the  fourteenth  to  the 
seventeenth  year  soon  comes  to  know  that  he  has  not  had  a  square 
deal  in  the  race  of  life,  and  he  joins  the  order  of  malcontents  and 
anarchists. 

Educators  are  practically  unanimous  in  the  belief  that  every  proper 
incentive  should  be  used  to  continue  the  school  life  of  the  boy  after 
he  reaches  the  eighth  grade  by  another  year  or  two  at  least ;  three  to 
five  years  would  be  better  still.  But  this  we  can  never  do  under  our 
present  system  of  education.  Indeed,  Mr.  President,  there  is  but  one 
opinion  to-day  touching  this  matter,  and  that  is  that  only  by  holding 
out  both  to  the  father  and  to  the  boy  the  great,  practical  advantages 
to  be  derived  from  vocational  training — a  training  that  shall  equip 
the  boy  for  the  duties  of  life — may  we  stimulate,  even  in  a  small 
degree,  that  much-needed  extension  of  his  school  life. 

All  are  agreed  with  Edison  that  the  great  majority  of  our  boys  at 
the  age  of  14 — at  the  completion  of  the  eighth  grade — hate  their 
school.  If  we  can,  by  placing  before  them  the  benefits  of  vocational 
education,  induce  them  to  add  another  year  to  their  school  life,  they 
would  then  come  to  see  the  necessities  of  a  better  education  from  a 
broader,  higher  viewpoint.  The  addition  of  one  more  year  of  school 
life  would  oftentimes  mean  the  still  further  addition  of  two,  three,  or 
even  more  years  to  that  life,  and  that,  as  we  all  know,  would  mean 
an  advantage  of  inestimable  value  to  the  future  of  the  boy. 


62  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

Industrial  education,  more  than  any  other  agency,  will  augment 
and  intensify  the  desire  for  more  knowledge,  both  general  and  voca- 
tional. It  will  unquestionably  arouse  into  action  thousands  of  boys 
possessing  latent  ability  and  talent,  and  with  their  desires  whetted 
for  still  greater  knowledge  every  institution  of  learning  now  in  ex- 
istence will  become  the  direct  beneficiary  of  the  joint  action  of  the 
Nation  and  the  State  in  providing,  as  here  proposed,  a  stable  founda- 
tion upon  which  can  be  builded  a  broader  education. 

I  state  a  fact  which  every  Senator  knows  when  I  say  with  reference 
to  the  school  life  of  the  great  majority  of  the  sons  of  those  men  who 
toil  in  the  mills,  the  workshops,  and  the  quarries,  that  they  are  most 
sadly  neglected.  The  father  is  usually  unable  to  find  employment 
for  his  14-year-old  boy  in  the  shop  or  quarry  where  he  works,  and 
the  boy  is  too  young  to  be  sent  away. 

In  support  of  the  correctness  of  my  contention  that  many  boys 
drift  into  a  criminal  manhood  when  they  are  turned  loose  from  the 
grammar  school,  I  quote  from  Prof.  George  Walter  Fiske,  who,  in 
his  series  of  lectures  on  "  Boy  life  and  self-government,"  says : 

Our  reformatories  and  jails  are  still  filled  with  mere  boys.  The  maximal 
age  for  malicious  mischief  is  only  14;  for  petty  larceny  and  assault,  15;  for 
crimes  against  property,  16;  while  the  maximum  curve  for  fornication  is  at  17. 
Early  and  middle  adolescence  is  still  the  great  crime  period.  The  shirking  of 
the  average  home  largely  accounts  for  this  boy  waste,  but  the  ethical  failure  of 
the  public  school  is,  to  a  degree,  responsible  also. 

Judge  Merritt  W.  Pinckney.  of  the  New  York  juvenile  court,  says 
that  apparent  neglect  and  incompetence  are  responsible  for  most  of 
the  delinquency  which  brought  to  his  court  three-fifths  of  the  12,000 
children  who  have  passed  through  it  during  his  incumbency  of  that 
office. 

Judge  William  McAdoo,  the  chief  magistrate  of  the  New  York 
City  municipal  court,  in  making  his  annual  report,  says : 

There  is  growing  up  in  this  city  a  menacing  army  of  boys  and  young  men 
who  are  the  most  troublesome  element  the  authorities  have  to  deal  with.  From 
the  ranks  of  these  lawless,  reckless  rowdies,  who  are  organized  in  bands  or 
bound  up  with  chums  or  pals,  come  most  of  the  crop  of  burglars,  truck  thieves, 
holdup  men,  and  other  criminals  and  dangerous  characters. 

Mr.  President,  this  great  asset  of  ours — the  American  boy — on 
completing  his  eighth  or  elementary  grade,  is  thrown,  like  the 
worthless  ore  from  the  copper  mine,  into  the  dump;  or,  to  state  it 
differently,  he  is  turned  adrift  and  allowed  to  degenerate  into  a 
cheap  and  oftentimes  criminal  manhood. 

One  of  the  leading  journals  of  Canada— ^the  Toronto  Globe — in 
commenting  on  Judge  McAdoo's  report,  uses  the  following  lan- 
guage : 

This  description  applies  fairly  well  to  many  of  the  older  boys  and  the  younger 
men  of  all  cities,  towns,  and  even  villages.  Probably  the  cause  is  the  same  in 
all  cases:  Physical  energy  craving  for  active  exercise,  mental  activity  dissatis- 
fied with  the  perfunctory  routine  of  the  graded  school,  and  a  tendency  to 
romance,  at  once  nurtured  but  debased  by  the  criminal  ideals  presented  not 
merely  im  works  of  imagination,  but  in  the  criminal  records  of  real  life.  A 
very  large  proportion  of  youths  of  the  class  described  by  Judge  McAdoo  are 
capable  of  being  diverted  from  their  downward  careers  and  developed  into  an 
excellent  type  of  law-abiding  citizens.  Among  the  various  means  of  reclaim- 
ing boys  of  the  class  above  described  none  is  more  effective  than  the  "  indus- 
trial "  school,  which  makes  provision  for  keeping  the  body  as  well  as  the  mind 
in  a  state  of  activity. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION".  63 

A  great  educator  has  embodied  a  whole  theory  of  common-sense  treatment 
of  youth  in  the  simple  injunction  to  "  put  the  whole  boy  to  school."  If  all 
schools  were  what  they  should  be  there  would  be  fewer  recruits  developing 
into  confirmed  criminals,  less  work  for  the  guardians  of  the  public  peace,  and 
a  finer  type  of  citizenship  even  among  those  respectable  people  who  have  never 
needed  repentance. 

A  great  city  can  not  afford  to  do  without  an  "  industrial  school "  any  more 
than  it  can  do  without  public  schools.  Such  an  institution  should  have  for 
its  invariable  concomitants  ample  room  for  outdoor  exercise  and  ample  oppor- 
tunity for  institutional  activity.  Book  learning  is  worth  cultivating,  but  it 
should  not  be  promoted  at  the  expense  of  manual  skill  directed  to  useful  ends 
by  trained  intelligence  controlled  by  common  sense. 

This  measure  purposes  to  do  exactly  what  Judge  McAdoo  would 
accomplish,  but  instead  of  waiting  until  the  boy  has  become  a 
criminal  it  takes  him  as  he  passes  from  the  elementary  school  and 
safeguards  him  during  the  early  period  of  adolescence. 

New  York  City  has  apparently  awakened  to  the  fact  that  some- 
thing must  be  done,  and  she  has  already  taken  steps  to  move  for- 
ward on  vocational  education  lines.  She  has  established  a  voca- 
tional school  for  boys  in  charge  of  Dr.  Charles  J.  Pickett. 

He  says,  touching  his  school: 

This  school  is  not  the  preparation  for  life;  it  is  life  itself.  There  is  no 
jumping  out  into  the  world,  there  is  no  break ;  what  a  boy  does  after  he  leaves 
school  is  only  a  continuation  of  what  he  has  been  doing  here.  We  fit  a  boy 
to  do  something  definite,  and  there  is  no  trouble  for  him  to  get  work  after 
he  leaves.  The  difference  between  our  boys  and  those  at  ordinary  elementary 
schools  is  that  when  the  latter  leave  school  they  look  for  a  job  and  take  any- 
thing they  can  get,  while  our  boys  know  what  they  can  do  and  have  no  diffi- 
culty in  securing  the  kind  of  work  for  which  they  are  fitted. 

In  every  possible  way  is  the  school  identical  in  form  with  the  actual  activities 
in  the  industrial  world,  so  that  the  boy  at  school  feels  that  he  has  already 
gone  out  into  the  world. 

There  is  probably  no  State  in  the  Union  more  progressive  to-day 
along  educational  lines  than  Massachusetts.  In  1911  she  provided 
a  general  system  for  vocational  training  and  established  a  State 
board  of  industrial  education.  The  executive  officer  of  that  board, 
Dr.  David  Snedden,  has  a  reputation  as  one  of  the  great  educators 
of  this  country,  and  his  reputation  is  not  confined  to  the  Atlantic, 
but  extends  to  the  Pacific  coast  as  well. 

He  believes  that  vocational  education  may  be  so  extended  as  to 
include  the  liberalizing  influences  of  a  cultural  education.  He  ha» — 
and,  I  believe,  properly — reached  the  conclusion  that  since  we  can 
not  give  the  boy  Latin  and  algebra,  we  should  adopt  a  curriculum 
which,  while  it  teaches  the  boy  the  practical  things  of  life,  to  the 
end  that  he  may  earn  a  livelihood  when  he  leaves  school,  shall  at  the 
same  time  give  to  him  a  reasonable  measure  of  cultural  training. 

I  want  to  quote  from  Dr.  Snedden,  for  it  shows  that  he  has  caught 
the  inspiration  of  the  present  and  is  not  wandering  in  the  trackless 
forest  of  the  educational  past — trackless,  because  under  the  condi- 
tions confronting  us  to-day  those  tracks  lead  to  nowhere,  so  far  as 
92  per  cent  of  our  boys  and  girls  are  concerned.  Dr.  Snedden  thinks 
we  may  make  the  practical  at  the  same  time  cultural  and  thus  reach 
the  cultural  ends  while  at  the  same  time  equipping  the  boy  with  a 
practical  education.  Dr.  Snedden  says : 

For  many  reasons  a  vital  vocational  education,  resting  on  concrete  founda- 
tions and  making  due  allowance  for  expansion  into  the  related  fields  of  science, 
art,  history,  economics,  and  civics,  may  become  an  exceedingly  effective  means 


64  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

of  liberalizing  the  minds  of  several  types  of  boys  and  girls,  and  especially  those 
least  capable  of  abstract  thinking  or  school  idealism. 

The  demand  for  vocational  education  under  school  conditions  is  a  widespread 
one  and  is  rooted  in  the  social  and  economic  changes  of  the  age.  Rightly 
organized  vocational  education  will  prove  a  profitable  investment  for  society. 

There  is  in  this  country  what  is  known  as  the  National  Educational 
Association.  At  its  national  convention  held  in  Cleveland,  Ohio,  in 
1908,  this  advanced  ground  was  taken : 

The  public  high  schools  should  not  be  chiefly  fitting  schools  for  higher  insti- 
tutions, but  should  be  adapted  to  the  general  needs,  both  intellectual  and  indus- 
trial, of  their  students  and  communities.  Fully  realizing  that  trained  and 
skilled  labor  is  a  primary  essential  to  the  industrial  and  commercial  welfare 
of  the  country,  we  cordially  indorse  the  establishment  by  municipal  boards  of 
education  of  trade  schools  and  evening  continuation  schools,  and  further  recom- 
mend that  the  instruction  in  these  schools  be  practical  and  efficient  and  have 
the  advice  and  approval  of  the  trade  interested,  to  the  end  that  graduates  of 
these  schools  may  at  once  become  advanced  apprentices  or  journeymen. 

Anyone  who  has  given  serious  consideration  to  the  broad  question 
of  school  curriculum  can  not  have  failed  to  observe  that  the  men  at 
the  head  of  our  State  educational  boards  are  largely  graduates  of 
universities.  They  have  believed,  and  I  share  in  that  belief,  that  it 
is  wise  for  every  boy  to  have  a  college  training.  The  curriculum 
of  practically  all  our  schools  looks  forward  to  the  college  as  the  ulti- 
mate end  of  all  school  life.  Every  college-bred  man  regards  it  a 
great  misfortune  that  our  young  men  are  not  receiving  a  more  gen- 
erous cultural  training,  and  so  do  I. 

But,  Mr.  President,  these  men  forget  that  only  1.71  per  cent  of  our 
boys  ever  enter  the  college  or  university.  They  forget  that  only  an 
additional  5.35  per  cent  ever  enter  the  high  school.  They  forget  that 
only  25  per  cent  of  the  balance  ever  get  as  high  as  the  eighth  or  upper 
grade  of  the  elementary  or  grammar  school.  They  forget  that  less 
than  50  per  cent  ever  complete  the  seventh  grade. 

In  brief,  Mr.  President,  they  predicate  their  plans  for  the  school 
life  of  the  boy  upon  what  ought  to  be  rather  than  what  is.  They 
would  have  every  boy  thoroughly  educated;  so  would  I;  but  since 
this  can  not  be,  let  us  be  practical.  Let  us  not  forget  that  much  as 
we  would  have  it  otherwise,  the  school  life  of  the  American  boy  must 
of  necessity  be  so  changed  as  to  teach  him  how  to  get  a  living. 

Mr.  President,  it  is  not  easy  to  estimate  the  advantages  which  will 
come  into  our  country  life  by  the  passage  of  this  bill.  Teachers  of 
agriculture  and  home  making  will  be  prepared  in  large  numbers  by 
the  agricultural  colleges  and  the  State  normal  and  other  training 
schools.  The  secondary  school  department  will  provide  in  the  local 
schools  the  beginnings  of  vocational  education. 

The  district  agricultural  schools  will  send  back  to  the  farms  hun- 
dreds of  thousands  of  boys  to  join  with  the  father,  who  meanwhile 
has  been  educated  by  the  farm  or  college  extension  work  provided 
for  by  the  bill;  and  together  they  would  join  in  vitalizing,  stimulat- 
ing, and  energizing  that  more  intelligent  and  more  profitable  farm 
management  of  which  our  country  to-day  stands  in  such  great  need. 

The  extension  work  will  furnish  instruction  and  inspiration  to 
millions  of  our  mature  farmers.  The  present  splendid  movement  for 
the  betterment  of  country  life  will  be  impelled  forward  at  a  faster 
rate.  The  aspirations  of  our  best  people  to  live  on  the  land  will  be 
aroused.  We  shall  see  the  genetically  best  of  our  great  white  race 
again  seeking  the  land  instead  of  deserting  the  country  for  the  city. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  65 

% 

Mr.  President,  I  think  I  am  naturally  optimistic.  I  do  not  share 
the  opinion  that  any  one  man  or  any  set  of  men  can  destroy  this  Gov- 
ernment or  for  any  protracted  period  retard  its  prosperity.  Our 
people  are  too  intelligent  and  too  patriotic,  and  in  the  end,  whatever 
policies  may  be  followed,  wise  counsels  will  prevail  and  a  generous 
measure  of  prosperity  will  continue. 

If,  however,  I  were  called  upon  to  state  what,  in  my  judgment,  was 
the  most  threatening  omen  of  the  future,  I  think  I  should  say  the  in- 
dustrial question. 

There  is,  in  my  judgment,  only  one  way  to  remove  this  great  spirit 
or  unrest,  and  that  is  by  giving  to  the  sons  of  our  laboring  men  an 
education  along  industrial  lines.  Do  this,  and  we  shall  make  them 
more  self-respecting,  more  law-abiding,  and,  I  hope,  more  patriotic 
citizens.  Failing  to  do  this,  I  fear  the  red  flag  of  anarchy  will  even- 
tually be  hoisted. 

It  is  not  the  trampling  of  the  American  flag  under  foot,  as  was  done 
recently  in  New  York  City,  that  is  disquieting,  but  rather  the  fact, 
which  this  trampling  evidences,  of  a  deep-seated  hatred  for  this  Gov- 
ernment on  the  part  of  an  increavsing  number  of  our  population. 

We  are  receiving  into  the  body  politic  a  larger  quantity  of  material 
of  difficult  digestion  than  it  can  assimilate.  The  immigrants  arriv- 
ing in  this  country  during  the  month  of  March,  1912,  were  83,654,  as 
against  75,306  last  year.  We  can  stand  this  influx  only  by  so  educat- 
ing the  next  generation  that  we  may  assimilate  them  into  our  political 
system.  The  sons  of  these  men  who  come  to  us  from  southern  and 
eastern  Europe  are  anxious  to  learn,  and  to  their  credit  be  it  said 
their  parents  are  willing  to  make  sacrifices  to  an  extent  that  Ameri- 
can parents  seem  oftentimes  slow  to  make. 

I  believe  it  is  within  our  power  to  so  legislate  that  all  our  people, 
or  practically  all,  may  have  an  honest  occupation — a  vocation,  an 
opportunity  to  earn  a  livelihood,  an  opportunity  to  obtain,  through 
pleasurable  labor,  the  wherewithal  to  supply  the  legitimate,  reason- 
able, frugal  demands  and  desires  of  mind  and  body. 

There  are  only  two  alternatives  connected  with  this  great  prob- 
lem— first,  to  close  our  doors  against  immigration,  or,  second,  to  see 
to  it  that  the  children  of  those  whom  we  permit  to  come  from  foreign 
shores  are  given  an  education  that  will  fit  them  to  earn  a  respectable 
livelihood.  Since  it  is  the  policy  to  permit  immigration,  we  should 
combine  with  that  policy  the  industrial  educational  features  of  this 
bill. 

Give  the  children  of  these  immigrants  an  education  along  voca- 
tional lines,  so  that  they  may  see  that  their  condition  is  bettered  be- 
cause of  their  change  of  residence  to  the  United  States,  and  they  will 
love  our  institutions,  love  our  country,  and  respect  our  flag. 

Deprive  them  of  such  an  education  as  will  make  them  efficient  and 
permit  them  to  earn  a  respectable  livelihood  and  we  may  well  fear 
that  the  red  flag  of  anarchy  will  take  the  place  of  the  Stars  and 
Stripes.  Educate  these  foreign  boys  and  they  are  a  blessing;  omit  to 
do  it,  and  they  become  a  menace.  Which  shall  we  do  ? 

Disraeli,  in  speaking  of  the  temperament  of  the  French  people, 
said: 

What  the  French  people  want  is  bread  and  a  circus— bread  with  which  to  fill 
their  stomachs,  and  a  circus  to  a  muse  them. 

49159— S.  Doc.  845,  62-2 5 


66  VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION. 

The  American  people  want,  most  of  all,  occupation,  and  at  wages 
which  will  give  them  bread  and  enable  them  to  give  their  children  an 
education  that  will  equip  them  for  the  struggles  of  life. 

Mr.  President,  we  must  not  do  injustice  to  the  laboring  man.  Out 
of  the  abundance  of  our  great  wealth  and  our  great  prosperity  we 
must  at  least  see  that  his  children  have  the  opportunity  to  receive  an 
education,  and  that  kind  of  an  education,  too,  which  shall  fit  and 
equip  him  to  be  self-respecting  and  self-supporting,  to  the  end  that 
he  may  take  his  place  alongside  of  his  more  favored  brother. 

We  must  so  combine  the  advantages  of  the  city  and  the  country 
that  more  of  our  best  people  will  live  on  the  farms;  and,  with  larger 
and  stronger  families,  they  can  help  our  race  to  gain  that  world 
leadership  which  can  only  be  attained  by  a  combination  of  large 
numbers  with  a  high  average  of  industrial  efficiency. 

Mr.  President,  the  occupied  man  is  a  good  citizen.  It  is  easy  for 
the  agitator  to  call  the  idle  man  to  deeds  of  violence  and  anarchy, 
but  the  agitator  is  not  able  to  lead  the  honest  arm  from  the  anvil  and 
the  plow  into  deeds  of  destruction. 

Wise  statesmanship  lies  in  so  administering  our  affairs  as  to  give 
the  greatest  measure  of  universal  contentment. 

National  defense  is  just  as  effectually  provided  for  in  promoting 
good  citizenship  as  in  building  battleships.  An  illiterate,  unedu- 
cated citizen,  disloyal  and  anarchistic,  as  he  oftentimes  is,  is  a  greater 
menace  to  our  national  safety  than  the  combined  battleships  of  Great 
Britain,  France,  and  Germany. 

Mr.  President,  parsimony  is  not  necessarily  true  economy.  There 
is  that  which  withholdeth  and  yet  tendeth  to  poverty.  Sound  econ- 
omy, in  my  judgment,  demands  the  appropriations  called  for  by  this 
measure.  If  enacted  into  law,  we  shall  find  within  the  next  10  years 
that,  instead  of  proving  to  be  an  expense,  it  will  prove  an  investment 
which  will  return  to  us  five,  ten,  or  even  twenty  fold  from  an  eco- 
nomic standpoint;  and  if  considered  with  reference  to  that  greatest 
of  all  our  assets — the  American  boy  and  girl — it  will  prove  an  invest- 
ment which  will  pay  returns  in  the  form  of  happiness,  contentment, 
and  efficiency  that  reach  to  the  infinite. 

Kant,  the  philosopher,  once  said  that  there  were  two  things  which 
overwhelmed  him  with  awe  as  he  thought  of  them.  One  was — 

The  star-sown  deep  of  space,  without  limit  and  without  end;  the  other  was 
right  and  wrong.  Right,  the  sacrifice  of  self  to  good;  wrong,  the  sacrifice  of 
good  to  self. 

"  Opinions  alter,  manners  change,  creeds  rise  and  fall,  but  the 
moral  law  is  written  on  the  tablets  of  eternity." 

If  in  doubt  as  to  our  true  pathway  concerning  the  right  and  justice 
of  this  problem,  let  us  make  equity  and  duty  our  guiding  stars. 

Mr.  President,  in  our  efforts  to  be  prudent  let  us  not  be  unjust. 
We  must  not  be  parsimonious  in  the  treatment  of  this  great  ques- 
tion, for  it  is  not  only  an  economic  but  a  moral  and  an  ethical  prob- 
lem. Dollars  and  cents  should  not  be  placed  in  the  balance  over 
against  right  and  duty  in  considering  this  movement  for  the  benefit 
of  the  sons  of  those  who  toil  on  our  farms,  in  our  mills,  our  mines,  our 
workshops,  and  our  quarries. 

Let  us  not,  Mr.  President,  as  we  pass  through  the  wilderness,  keep 
our  eyes  so  closely  fixed  upon  the  manna  that  we  fail  to  behold  the 
exalted  peaks  of  Sinai. 


APPENDIX. 


G7 


ENDORSEMENTS  AND  CRITICISMS  BY  LEADING  EDUCATORS  OF 
THE  PAGE  BILL  FOR  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 


ALABAMA. 


J.  A.  Wilkinson,  commissioner  of  agriculture  and  industries,  says: 

"  WQ  of  Alabama  are  very  much  interested  and  concerned  about 
vocational  education,  and  we  believe  that  the  time  is  at  hand  when 
the  Federal  Government  should  move  in  this  direction. 

"  I  believe  that  if  the  Federal  Government  would  make  an 
appropriation  and  lead  the  States  in  this  movement,  this  would 
be  one  of  the  wisest  steps  that  could  possibly  be  taken  by  our 
great  statesmen  in  Washington." 

James  X.  Powers,  president  State  Normal  College,  Florence,  says: 

"  I  have  read  the  bill  with  interest,  and  hope  to  see  it  passed  at 
an  early  day." 

J.  W.  Watson,  A.  B.,  president  of  the  first  district  agricultural 
school,  Jackson,  says: 

"  I  am  heartily  in  favor  of  the  vocational  educational  bill, 
which  is  now  pending  in  Congress,  and  I  sincerely  hope  that  it 
will  pass.  The  progress  of  vocational  education  is  very  much 
retarded  because  of  lack  of  funds;  in  fact,  as  I  see  and  under- 
stand the  situation  in  the  States,  very  little  progress  can  be  made 
along  agricultural  and  industrial  lines  until  Congress  comes  to 
our  rescue  and  gives  us  an  appropriation." 

Walter  S.  Buchanan,  president  State  Agricultural  and  Mechanical 
College,  Normal : 

"  I  have  read  with  interest  the  entire  bill  and  several  com- 
ments on  the  same,  and  I  much  prefer  your  bill  and  hope  it  will 
pass.  I  think  it  the  best  thing  that  has  been  before  Congress  in 
several  years." 

James  K.  Powers,  president  State  Normal  College,  Florence : 

"  I  thank  you  for  recent  favors  with  copies  of  the  Page  voca- 
tional education  bill  (Senate  bill  No.  3)  and  advising  me  of  its 
status. 

"I  sincerely  trust  that  you  will  be  able  to  push  it  through 
substantially  as  it  is — certainly  with  all  branches  of  the  work 
provided  for." 

69 


70  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION, 

ARIZONA. 

A.  J.  Matthews,  president  Tempe  Normal  School  of  Arizona, 
Tempe : 

"I  thank  you  for  the  bill  relating  to  assistance  for  agricul- 
tural instruction  from  the  United  States  Government.  I  am 
much  interested  in  it  just  now,  and  it  is  a  very  pertinent  ques- 
tion at  the  present  time.  We  are  just  about  to  adopt  an  ele- 
mentary agricultural  course  in  connection  with  our  normal 
school,  as  we  have  600  acres  of  excellent  land,  and  should  your 
bill  pass  we  would  undoubtedly  be  benefited. 

"I  agree  most  heartily  with  your  stand  for  broadening  the 
application  of  Federal  assistance  for  agricultural  education,  and 
in  no  place  can  this  work  be  more  emphasized  than  in  the  State 
normal  schools,  where  teachers  are  prepared  for  the  public 
schools.  It  seems  to  me  that  the  very  root  of  the  matter  is 
reached  through  our  schools.  If  teachers  are  competent  and 
enthusiastic  in  such  work,  they  have  an  opportunity  to  arouse 
an  interest  in  the  homes  of  the  grammar-school  pupils  which 
represent  the  great  mass  of  the  pupils  of  our  public-school 
system. 

"  I  congratulate  you  upon  the  far-reaching  benefits  of  the  pro- 
posed measure  and  trust  that  it  will  be  made  a  law  in  the  near 
future." 

Hon.  Richard  E.  Sloan,  governor  of  Arizona,  Phoenix : 

"  I  have  carefully  gone  over  your  bill,  and  have  consulted 
with  some  of  our  leading  educators  as  to  its  provisions,  with  the 
result  that  I  heartily  commend  the  general  plan  outlined  for  the 
establishment  and  maintenance  of  agricultural  high  schools,  to 
be  supported  jointly  by  the  Federal  and  State  Governments. 
Vocational  training  more  and  more  is  claiming  the  attention  of 
educators,  and  wisely  so,  in  my  judgment,  so  that  your  plan  is 
in  line  with  this  general  movement  and  puts  agriculture  upon 
an  equal  footing  in  this  regard  with  other  applied  sciences.  The 
practical  value  of  agricultural  courses  in  high  schools  is  apparent, 
and  if  our  agricultural  colleges  are  to  do  work  of  the  highest 
quality  and  breadth  they  should  be  supplemented  by  such  pre- 
paratory courses  in  the  high  schools. 

"We  have  made  a  start  in  this  direction  in  Arizona,  and 
although  the  amount  which  shall  be  apportioned  to  our  State 
under  your  bill  is  small,  still  it  will  be  a  help  and  an  encourage- 
ment to  receive  any  substantial  sum  from  the  National  Govern- 
ment, to  be  extended  in  this  behalf. 

"  I  sincerely  trust  your  bill  may  receive  the  support  it  deserves 
and  that  it  may  become  a  law."" 

A.  H.  Wilde,  president  University  of  Arizona,  Tucson: 

"  I  am  much  interested  in  the  contents  of  your  letter  and  hope 
earnestly  that  your  bill  will  yet  pass." 

R.  H.  Forbes,  University  of  Arizona,  Tucson,  says : 

"  Replying  to  yours  of  December  4,  allow  me  to  express  my 
heartiest  appreciation  of  the  motives  actuating  Senate  bill  No. 

Q          O       S*f\TT\Tr     /"VT      TrrVn  rtTl       TT/^11       ViOTTf*      1  11  C?^~       T^\T»TTTO  T»/"l  Clf*       YV»  f\     '* 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  71 

ARKANSAS. 

George  B.  Cook,  State  superintendent  of  public  instruction,  Little 
Rock,  says: 

"  I  regret  it  is  impossible  to  attend  conference,  but  send  hearty 
indorsement  of  Page  bill  and  assure  you  of  most  cordial  cooper- 
ation of  the  Arkansas  department  of  public  instruction  and  my- 
self personally.  This  measure  specifically  recognizes  the  most 
important  duty  that  rests  upon  the  Nation  as  well  as  upon  the 
individual,  community,  and  State,  the  duty  of  training  for  citi- 
zenship through  public  schools." 

J.  J.  Doyne,  president  Arkansas  State  Normal  School,  Conway, 

says: 

"  No  measure  that  has  been  presented  for  years,  it  seems  to  me, 
means  so  much  to  the  rapid  advancement  of  those  measures  so 
vital  to  the  prosperity  of  our  country." 

Victor  C.  Kays,  State  Agricultural  School,  Jonesboro,  says : 

"  This  bill  is  one  of  vital  interest  to  the  farming  people,  not 
only  of  the  South,  but  of  the  whole  country.  On  our  farming 
people  depends  the  prosperity  of  the  rest  of  our  population. 
Heretofore  the  farmer  has  received  little  recognition  along  the 
lines  of  instruction  from  the  Federal  Government.  When  we 
compare  the  expenditure  for  the  uplift  of  the  farming  people 
with  those  which  have  been  made  for  other  classes  of  our  popula- 
tion and  for  other  purposes  which  are  not  constructive  in  their 
nature,  the  sums  meted  to  agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts  seem 
to  be  a  mere  pittance.  The  people  throughout  this  State  are 
thoroughly  alive  to  the  benefit  to  be  derived  from  aid  of  this  sort, 
and  they  are  watching  the  acts  of  their  Representatives  with  a 
great  deal  of  interest  to  see  that  every  effort  is  put  forth  for  the 
passage  of  this  bill,  which  seems  to  us  to  be  best  adapted  to  our 
needs  at  the  present  time.  It  would  seem,  with  the  proper 
direction  of  the  efforts  of  our  statesmen  who  are  interested  in 
benefiting  the  condition  of  the  agricultural  community,  that 
this  bill  should  become  a  law." 

C.  F.  Adams,  dean  and  director  College  of  Agriculture,  University 
of  Arkansas,  Fayetteville : 

"  The  Page  bill  meets  with  my  personal  ideas,  and  is  wholly 
adaptable  to  this  State." 

CALIFORNIA. 

Edward  Hyatt,  State  superintendent  of  public  instruction,  Sacra- 
mento, says: 

"  Please  count  me  in  to  do  everything  I  can  in  my  bailiwick 
for  the  Page  bill.  You  are  free  to  quote  me  to  any  desired 
extent  as  favoring  the  bill  and  being  ready  to  further  its  inter- 
est in  all  legitimate  ways." 

Jesse  F.  Millspaugh,  president  California  State  Normal  School, 
Los  Angeles: 

"  Important  as  it  is,  agricultural  education,  if  given  in  colleges 
and  universities  only,  will  never  popularize  the  farm  or  develop 


72  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

widespread  interest  in  rural  concerns.  With  well-supported  agri- 
cultural colleges  in  every  State  to  develop  the  science  and  estab- 
lish foci  for  its  extension,  the  high  schools  and  the  normal  schools 
must  carry  this  gospel,  to  the  people  and  particularly  to  the  boys 
and  girls  of  the  Nation  if  its  teachings  and  spirit  are  ever  really 
to  infect  the  population. 

"  I  believe  that  no  more  important  educational  measure  has  ever 
been  proposed  than  that  which  is  contemplated  by  the  Page  bill. 
It  is  said  that,  with  the  exception  of  the  emancipation  procla- 
mation, the  most  far-reaching  act  of  President  Lincoln's  adminis- 
tration was  his  signing  of  the  Morrill  bill  establishing  our 
national  system  of  agricultural  and  mechanical  colleges.  The 
Page  vocational  bill,  when  enacted  into  law,  will  take  its  place 
in  history  as  the  natural  supplement  of  that  great  achievement 
and  of  equal  importance  to  it." 

G.  W.   Shaw,  college  of  agriculture,   University   of   California, 
Berkeley : 

"  It  is  my  firm  opinion  that  the  passage  of  the  Page  bill  will 
mean  more  to  the  country  than  two-thirds  of  the  money  which 
is  spent  in  various  engineering  projects,  and  that  it  is  a  move  in 
the  right  direction.  It  has  my  hearty  indorsement,  and  I  sin- 
cerely hope  that  Congress  may  pass  the  bill  as  it  stands. 

"  I  shall  certainly  give  you  all  the  assistance  possible  in  urging 
the  passage  of  a  measure  which  is  so  vital  to  the  agricultural  and 
industrial  interests  of  the  country." 

M.  Lillian  Trimble,  department  of  home  economics,  Mills  College, 
Mills  College  Post  Office: 

"  The  Page  vocational  education  bill,  to  which  you  have  re- 
cently called  my  attention,  receives  my  heartiest  approval.  It 
will  inevitably  raise  the  standard  of  living  of  the  masses  through 
instruction  in  the  use  of  resources.  I  want  to  commend  you  and 
your  coworkers  for  your  activity  in  promoting  a  measure  so  full 
of  promise." 

E.  W.  Hilgard,  college  of  agriculture,  University  of  California, 
Berkeley : 

"  I  have  received  and  perused  with  great  satisfaction  the  bill 
introduced  by  you  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  the  States  in  estab- 
lishing instruction  in  agriculture  in  the  schools.  This  is  a  matter 
about  which  I  have  spoken  and  written  for  the  last  35  years, 
being  convinced  that  agricultural  colleges,  established  under  the 
Morrill  Act,  will  never  be  able  to  attain  their  full  usefulness  in 
educating  teachers  and  leaders  of  progress,  until  instruction  in 
agriculture  is  introduced  into  the  elementary  and  intermediate 
schools.  They  have  been  charged  with  '  educating  boys  away 
from  the  farm,'  where,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  it  is  the  public 
schools  fashioned  upon  a  schedule  applicable  to  the  city  children 
which  alienates  them  from  the  farm,  since  in  no  way  is  their 
attention  directed  to  farming,  except  by  hard  work  at  home. 
The  nation-wide  movement  now  on  foot  for  correcting  this  evil 
is  what  I  have  been  hoping  for  all  of  my  life,  and  I  welcome 
most  warmly  the  initiative  taken  by  you  in  giving  national  aid 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  73 

to  this  important  subject,  provided  the  States  will  do  so  them- 
selves." 

Mrs.  Nellie  W.  Hunt,  secretary  California  State  Grange,  Napa: 

"  Your  letter  under  date  of  March  2  is  before  me.  After  hav- 
ing read  over  the  literature  which  accompanied  this  letter,  I  can 
assure  you  that  the  bill  meets  with  my  entire  approval. 

"  I  have  mailed  the  literature  to  the  chairman  of  our  committee 
on  education,  who  I  know  will  give  it  his  very  earnest  considera- 
tion, and  be  prepared  to  bring  the  matter  to  the  attention  of  our 
State  grange  at  the  proper  time." 

COLORADO. 
Z.  X.  Snyder,  president'  State  Teachers'  College,  Greeley : 

"  I  had  been  interested  in  Senate  bill  No.  3  by  Senator  Page 
ever  since  its  first  introduction  into  the  United  States  Congress. 
I  do  not  know  of  anything  that  the  United  States  Congress 
could  do  that  would  so  directly  aid  in  the  development  of  the 
general  intelligence  of  the  people  through  an  educational  process 
as  the  passage  and  carrying  into  effect  properly  this  bill.  Edu- 
cation for  efficiency  must,  first,  train  an  individual  to  earn  a 
living  to  secure  and  own  a  home;  second,  to  be  of  service  to 
others  in  making  life  better  and  richer;  and  third,  in  having  an 
abiding  interest  in  the  development  of  our  institutional  life,  as 
the  home,  the  school,  and  the  State.  These  mark  the  efficiency 
of  the  school  system.  Our  school  system  has  not  been  such  as 
to  attain  these  ends.  It  seems  to  me  this  bill  will  lead  more 
directly  to  it  than  any  other  means  apparent  at  the  present  time. 
I  am  heartily  in  favor  of  it ;  the  people  of  the  State  of  Colorado 
are  in  favor  of  it;  the  State  Teachers'  Association  and  the 
Educational  Council  of  Colorado  have  made  a  report  in  favor 
of  it;  the  State  institutions  of  Colorado  have  given  a  report  in 
favor  of  it — indeed,  there  are  none  against  it." 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Colorado  Teachers'  Association  a  resolu- 
tion formally  indorsing  Senate  bill  3  was  adopted,  and  at  a 
later  meeting  of  the  educational  council  of  Colorado  the  com- 
mittee on  vocational  instruction  made  a  report  strongly  favoring 
the  enactment  of  Senate  bill  3  and  indorsed  the  action  of  the 
Colorado  Teachers'  Association. 

CONNECTICUT. 

Henry  T.  Burr,  principal  State  Normal  Training  School,  Wil- 
limantic : 

"  I  have  carefully  read  the  report  on  vocational  education  and 
the  bill  which  accompanies  your  letter  of  February  29.  With 
the  objects  of  this  bill  I  am  in  entire  sympathy.  I  sincerely 
hope  the  bill  will  pass. 

"  The  need  of  greatly  extended  opportunities  for  vocational 
education  is  felt  by  nearly  everyone  who-  is  connected  with  the 
schools.  It  seems  to  me  that  the  matter  is  of  great  importance 
to  the  country  at  large,  and  I  believe  that  Congress  would  be 


74  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION". 

altogether  justified   in   appropriating  money  for  the  purposes 
noted  in  this  bill." 

Howell  Cheney,  member  State  board  of  education,  South  Man- 
chester : 

"  I  agree  with  you  most  decidedly  that  education  for  the  en- 
couragement of  the  trades  and  industries  has  not  had  its  fair 
share  of  public  support,  which  certainly  can  not  be  said  of  the 
agricultural  schools." 

Charles  L.  Beach,  president  of  the  Connecticut  Agricultural  Col- 
lege, Storrs,  says: 

"  I  am  heartily  in  favor  of  the  passage  of  a  bill  in  aid  of  agri- 
cultural extension.  The  results  from  an  investment  of  this 
character  promise  large  returns,  and  I  trust  that  the  present  Con- 
gress may  take  favorable  action  upon  this  important  measure." 

DELAWARE. 

Harry  Hayward,  director  Agricultural  Experiment  Station,  Dela- 
ware College,  Newark: 

"  I  have  your  letter  of  February  16,  inclosing  a  revised  copy  of 
Senate  bill  No.  3,  known  as  the  Page  bill.  I  have  examined  'this 
bill  with  some  care,  and  it  will  be  a  pleasure  for  me  to  exert  all 
my  influence  to  secure  its  passage.  I  am  confident  that  I  also 
speak  for  the  State  board  of  education,  as  well  as  for  the  trustees 
of  this  institution,  when  I  say  that  I  hope  the  bill  will  pass  dur- 
ing the  present  session  of  Congress. 

"I  hope  that  you  will  have  no  difficulty  in  getting  your  bill 
through,  as  I  believe  that  it  is  the  most  comprehensive  measure 
of  its  kind  ever  presented  to  Congress." 

DISTRICT   OF   COLUMBIA. 

Clarence  J.  Owens,  secretary- treasurer  of  the  Southern  Commercial 
Congress,  Washington,  says: 

"  The  Southern  Commercial  Congress,  through  its  executive 
officers,  has  approved  the  Page  vocational  education  bill  now 
pending  in  the  Senate.  Without  sectional  or  political  motives 
the  Southern  Commercial  Congress  has  been  named  by  friends 
of  this  measure  as  the  national  headquarters  for  the  advocacy  of 
the  passage  of  the  bill." 

Dr.  Myers,  principal  of  the  McKinley  Manual  Training  School  at 
Washington,  says: 

"After  considerable  study  of  the  subject,  with  particular  at- 
tention to  Germany,  which  is  far  ahead  of  other  countries  in 
training  for  the  industries,  I  am  forced  to  the  conclusion  that 
a  satisfactory  system  of  industrial  education  in  this  country 
must  include  a  working  over  of  the  elementary  school  curricu- 
lum in  such  a  way  as  to  make  the  industrial  activities  of  the 
community  the  vitalizing  factor  in  it." 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  75 

Dr.   William   Davison,   newly   elected   superintendent  of   public 
schools,  District  of  Columbia,  says: 

"  I  am  in  favor  of  working  out  further  the  idea  of  introducing 
vocational  subjects  into  the  curriculum  of  the  schools.  People 
are  beginning  to  realize  that  boys  and  girls  must  be  taught  to 
earn  a  living  and  that  they  can  not  spend  their  entire  time  in 
studying  so-called  classical  subjects.  All  children  must  be  edu- 
cated on  their  ethical  side  and  must  be  taught  about  the  higher 
things  of  life,  but  they  must  also  be  taught  that  they  must  sup- 
port themselves  and  be  given  lessons  in  how  to  earn  money.  Our 
schools  should  be  well  balanced,  with  both  these  ideas  kept  well 
to  the  front.  I  have  just  written  a  letter  giving  my  hearty  in- 
dorsement to  the  Page  bill,  known  as  Senate  bnl  No.  3.  I  am 
exceedingly  pleased  to  know  that  you  have  received  such  an  un- 
qualified and  hearty  indorsement  of  your  bill  from  the  State 
superintendents  of  the  public  institutions  throughout  the 
country." 

Myron  Germain  Jones,  director  of  education  in  the  Washington 
Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  says : 

"  What  private  initiative  has  amply  attested  as  wise  and 
needed ;  what  careful  investigations  of  educational  leaders,  econ- 
omists, and  captains  of  industry  have  clearly  shown  to  be  the  new 
demand  if  we  are  to  be  a  nation  of  producers;  what  States  like 
Minnesota,  Iowa,  Ohio,  and  Massachusetts  have  already  done  in 
consolidated  rural  schools  and  in  trade-training  systems  related 
to  local  industry,  would  all  go  to  demonstrate  the  desirability  of 
enacting  the  provisions  of  this  bill  into  our  Federal  scheme  of 
education,  and  that  without  delay. 

"  The  educational  work  is  democratic  and  Christlike  because 
of  its  humbler  aims — humbler  as  regards  culture  per  se,  but  vaster 
as  regards  humanity.  It  aims  not,  like  the  university,  to  reach 
and  teach  a  maximum  of  knowledge  and  truth,  but  to  evolve  the 
*  maximum  of  individual  manhood;  to  reach  down  to  the  man 
who  has  not  had  a  chance,  to  help  him  up,  to  put  his  feet  on  the 
first  step  he  can  now  reach,  to  help  him  upward,  stair  by  stair, 
as  he  is  able  to  advance,  not  necessarily  to  the  highest  reach  of 
truth  and  knowledge  attainable  by  man,  but  to  the  highest  at- 
tainable by  this  man,  practicable  for  him;  to  make  his  life  the 
greatest,  richest,  and  most  helpful  it  can  be  made  within  his  span 
of  being." 

The  Evening  Star,  Washington,  says: 

"The  rural  educational  problem  is  one  that  has  long  been 
neglected.  It  is  also  one  of  the  most  important  problems  of  the 
present  day.  Fifty-five  per  cent  of  the  population  of  the  United 
States  live  in  rural  districts  and  in  small  villages.  Sixty-five  per 
cent  of  the  children  are  there.  In  many  parts  of  the  country  we 
still  have  the  one-room  school,  where  the  teacher  is  supervisor, 
principal,  superintendent,  and  teacher  all  in  one. 

"  Too  many  boys  are  being  turned  loose  in  the  world  to  live  in 
a  makeshift  way;  turned  loose  without  any  one  desirable  thing 


76  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

having  been  well  enough  learned  to  make  a  living  at  it.  A  good 
brick  mason  is  surer  of  a  comfortable  life  than  an  indifferent  law- 
yer and  is  a  bigger  factor  in  the  upbuilding  of  the  world." 

A.  P.  Bourland,  of  the  board  of  trustees  of  the  Peabody  Education 
Fund,  Washington: 

"  I  shall  be  obliged  if  you  will  have  sent  me  20  copies  of  the 
bill  encouraging  instruction  in  agriculture,  along  with  20  copies 
of  the  Keport  on  Vocational  Education.  If  you  will  let  me 
know  of  any  specific  service  I  can  render  I  shall  be  gratified.  I 
am  finding  no  opposition  to  the  bill." 

FLORIDA. 

William   Halloway,   State  superintended  of   public  instruction, 
Tallahassee,  says: 

"  The  State  department  of  education  and  the  friends  of  edu- 
cation throughout  Florida  are  strongly  in  favor  of  the  passage 
of  the  Page  bill." 

J.  J.  Vernon,  dean  of  the  college  of  agriculture,  University  of 
Florida,  says: 

"  The  Page  bill,  Senate  3,  is  both  practical  and  comprehensive. 
It  is  the  best  bill  yet  offered  having  for  its  purpose  the  training 
of  the  sadly  neglected  masses.  It  is  socially  and  economically 
sound.  Congressional  action  is  necessary  to  draw  out  backward 
States.  The  action  of  Congress  is  urgently  needed.  I  indorse 
the  Page  bill." 

W.  B.  Cate,  principal  Florida  Normal  Institute  and  Commercial 
College,  Madison : 

"  I  have  just  read  Senate  bill  No.  3,  known  as  the  Page  school 
bill,  and  heartily  approve  of  it." 

GEORGIA. 

M.  L.  Brittain,  State  superintendent  of  education,  Atlanta,  says: 

"  I  feel  a  great  interest  in  the  Page  bill.  It  seems  to  me  that 
the  measure  proposed  is  directed  toward  a  vital  need.  It  so 
happens  that,  through  the  concentration  of  wealth  in  urban 
localities,  the  child  in  the  city  and  town  receives  from  two  to 
ten  times  as  much  educational  assistance  as  the  one  on  the  farm. 
This,  too,  despite  the  fact  that  we  are  all  dependent  upon  the 
results  of  the  work  of  those  engaged  in  agriculture. 

"  I  earnestly  hope  that  the  bill  will  pass,  and  that  in  this  way 
more  help  may  be  given  to  each  State  to  promote  rural  life  and 
prosperity." 

Southern  Machinery,  Atlanta,  says: 

"  That  industrial  education  has  assumed  national  importance 
and  is  attracting  attention  throughout  the  United  States  is  shown 
by  a  bill  recently  introduced  in  the  Senate  by  Senator  Carroll  S. 
Page,  with  a  view  to  Government  aid  to  the  States  in  promoting 
a  better  system  of  education  along  agricultural  and  industrial 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  77 

lines  and  in  home  economics.  The  bill  as  it  stands  at  present 
may  not  be  entirely  satisfactory  in  every  respect,  but  the  subject 
is  worthy  the  best  thought  of  the  Nation.  Industrial  education 
has  been  tried  in  a  comparatively  small  way  and  found  to  be 
helpful.  It  has  passed  the  experimental  stage  and  bids  fair  to 
become  one  of  the  most  important  branches  of  public  instruc- 
tion." 

Hon.  G.  Gunby  Jorden,  president  board  of  education,  Columbus, 
says: 

"  From  a  long  experience  in  manuf acturing  and  in  farming, 
together  with  continued  service  for  several  years  as  a  trustee  in 
one  of  the  State  schools  of  agriculture  in  Georgia,  and  as  presi- 
dent of  the  board  of  education  of  Columbus,  Ga.,  I  have  had 
opportunities  in  forming  a  very  decided  opinion  upon  the  neces- 
sity for  vocational  education  in  the  United  States.  I  have  never 
had  occasion  to  change  my  views  as  to  the  great  necessity  for 
Federal  aid  in  this  regard. 

"A  thorough  training  of  the  youths  of  this  land  in  industrial, 
agricultural,  and  vocational  work  would  save  untold  millions, 
wasted  now  in  senseless  strikes  and  pitiless  lockouts,  by  a  better 
and  saner  acquaintance  between  capital  and  labor. 

"  The  Federal  Government,  in  my  opinion,  dealing  equitably 
and  fairly  with  all  the  States  and  Territories  in  this  regard,  is 
not  only  well  within  its  constitutional  rights  but  could  make  no 
appropriation  of  money  which  would  so  soon,  so  thoroughly,  and 
so  lastingly  benefit  the  people." 

H.  J.  Pearce,  president  Brenan  College  Conservatory,  Gaines- 
ville : 

"  I  have  read  with  considerable  interest  your  bill  which  you 
have  had  the  kindness  to  send  me,  and  I  am  entirely  in  sympathy 
with  the  general  plan  proposed." 

J.  D.  Wood,  secretary  of  the  Atlanta  Builders'  Exchange,  At- 
lanta : 

"  We  are  pleased  to  acknowledge  receipt  of  your  letter  of 
April  19  in  reference  to  the  Page  bill  now  pending  in  the  Senate, 
and  to  say  that  the  same  will  have  the  hearty  approval  and  sup- 
port of  the  Atlanta  Builders'  Exchange." 

IDAHO. 

G.  M.  Shepherd,  State  superintendent  of  public  instruction,  Boise, 
says: 

"  It  may  please  you  to  know  that  at  a  meeting  of  the  Idaho 
State  Teachers'  Association,  held  January  4  to  6,  the  association 
passed  a  resolution  urging  our  Representatives  in  Congress  to  do 
all  in  their  power  to  pass  Senate  bill  3. 

"  I  sincerely  hope  the  bill  will  pass  Congress  at  this  session. 
I  am  particularly  desirous  that  it  pass  at  this  time  so  that  at  our 
next  legislature  we  may  pass  laws  in  harmony  with  ,the  Page  bill. 
The  greater  part  of  our  State  is  agricultural  and  we  need  schools 
such  as  the  bill  makes  possible.  Too  long  has  our  educational 
system  been  at  fault  in  that  it  did  not  prepare  our  boys  and  girls 


78  VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION. 

for  useful  citizenship.  We  need  to  educate  them  for  the  farm 
and  the  trades  rather  than  away  from  them. 

"  I  hope  a  few  narrow-minded  people  who  are  always  crying 
expense  will  be  able  to  see  that  this  is  one  of  the  greatest  and 
best  pieces  of  legislation  for  the  welfare  of  the  Nation  that  has 
ever  been  introduced. 

"  We  will  be  glad  to  assist  in  any  way  we  can  to  secure  the 
passage  of  this  bill." 

Earl  S.  Wooster*,  dean  rural  department,  Lewiston  State  Normal 
School,  Lewiston: 

"  I  am  very  glad  to  state  to  you  that  I  am  heartily  in  favor  of 
the  general  purpose  of  the  Page  bill,  and  trust  that  nothing  will 
stand  in  the  way  of  its  passage.  I  shall  be  very  glad  indeed  to 
do  anything  within  my  power  to  assist  in  the  passage  of  this 
bill." 
G.  A.  Axline,  president  State  Normal  School,  Albion : 

"  During  the  past  six  weeks  either  myself  or  members  of  my 
faculty  have  attended  meetings  of  the  public-school  trustees  of 
Fremont,  Bonneville,  Bannock,  Lincoln,  Twin  Falls,  Elaine, 
Owyhee,  and  Elmore  Counties.  In  each  one  of  these  counties 
the  trustees  expressed  a  strong  desire  for  vocational  education  in 
the  public  schools.  You  are  right  in  believing  that  the  people 
are  demanding  vocational  education,  and  I  believe  that  it  will  be 
a  mistake  for  their  Representatives  in  Congress  to  neglect  this 
demand. 

"  I  readily  appreciate  the  fact  that  men  who  do  not  come  in  as 
close  contact  with  the  patrons  of  the  public  schools  as  I  do  may 
not  be  aware  of  the  very  rapid  and  strong  growth  of  public  senti- 
ment toward  vocational  education  during  the  past  four  years. 
I  am  quite  certain  that  there  are  many  Congressmen  who  would 
vote  in  favor  of  your  bill  if  they  understood  the  real  situation 
who  now  are  opposing  it  because  they  do  not  realize  the  demand 
of  the  people  for  a  legislation  of  this  sort." 

L.  C.  Aicher,  superintendent  Aberdeen  Agricultural  Experiment 
Station,  University  of  Idaho,  Boise: 

"  I  am  heartily  in  favor  of  your  proposed  bill  and  shall  do  all 
I  can  to  further  its  interests. 

"  There  is  no  question  but  what  the  passage  of  such  a  bill 
would  cause  a  wonderful  stimulus  to  the  industrial,  agricultural, 
and  vocational  work  of  our  great  country." 

J.   S.   Welch,  superintendent   Gooding  Agricultural  Experiment 
Station,  University  of  Idaho,  Boise: 

"  Have  carefully  read  copy  of  Senate  bill  No.  3  and  am  glad  to 
give  it  my  hearty  indorsement.  Hope  that  it  may  pass  both 
Houses." 

E.  J.  Iddings,  department  of  animal  husbandry,  University  of 
Idaho : 

"  I  have  your  favor  of  some  days  ago  in  regard  to  the  Page  bill 
for  extending  aid  to  the  agricultural  colleges.  I  have  looked  over 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  79 

the  bill  and  earnestly  hope  that  its  provisions  may  be  enacted  into 
law.  Agricultural  education  is  immensely  popular,  and  the  great 
trouble  in  forwarding  the  movement  for  better  agriculture  is  that 
we  have  not  enough  trained  men  to  handle  the  work  and  are  woe- 
fully deficient  in  funds  for  experimental  work,  demonstration 
work,  teaching,  and  for  carrying  out  other  functions  of  the  agri- 
cultural colleges  and  experiment  stations.  I  wish  to  extend  my 
support  for  whatever  it  may  be  worth  toward  the  cause  repre- 
sented by  the  Page  bill." 

ILLINOIS. 

Hon.  C.  S.  Deneen,  governor  of  Illinois,  says : 

"  Since  acknowledging  the  receipt  of  your  letter  of  the  llth 
instant,  I  have  read  the  bill  inclosed  and  I  am  in  sympathy  with 
its  provisions  concerning  the  introduction  of  vocational  instruc- 
tion in  the  public  schools  of  the  secondary  class.  These  provi- 
sions are  in  harmony  with  the  suggestions  and  recommendations 
of  our  State  educational  commission,  which  has  just  completed  a 
codification  of  our  school  laws  and  the  preparation  of  courses  of 
study  in  agriculture,  manual  training,  and  domestic  science  for 
use  in  these  schools,  as  well  as  in  the  country  schools  of  the  State. 

"  With  the  general  purpose  of  the  bill  to  further  the  introduc- 
tion into  the  public-school  system  of  the  States  of  education  in 
the  practical  arts  and  sciences,  I  am  in  hearty  accord." 

Edwin  G.  Cooley,  former  superintendent  of  the  Chicago  public 
schools^  says: 

"America's  resources,  though  great,  are  not  infinite,  and  we 
must  learn  the  lesson  of  efficiency  in  work  if  we  are  to  maintain 
our  place.  We  can  become  a  true  democracy  only  when  we  are 
as  much  concerned  about  training  a  good  blacksmith  as  we  are 
about  training  a  good  lawyer — when  our  system  of  schools  offers 
equal  opportunities  to  all." 

Frank  M.  Leavitt,  associate  professor  of  industrial  education  in 
the  University  of  Chicago,  says: 

"  The  purpose  of  the  proposed  legislation  seems  to  be  to 
provide  well-rounded  vocational  courses  as  well  as  general 
preparation  for  agriculture,  trades,  and  industries,  and  home 
making  suited  to  the  respective  sections  of  the  United  States. 
It  includes  encouragement  for  those  permanently  engaged  in 
these  vocations,  and  '  not  necessarily  graduated  for  elementary 
schools,'  by  the  establishment  of  short,  practical  courses.  It 
purposes  to  promote  earlier  interest  in  the  scientific  study  of 
these  fundamental  human  activities  by  giving  appropriate  in- 
struction in  specialized  normal  courses.  The  movement  to  furnish 
an  adequate  education  for  the  agricultural  and  industrial  workers 
of  the  country  is  now  well  under  way,  and  renewed  interest 
would  certainly  be  stimulated  by  the  passage  of  the  Page  bill. 
The  bill  deserves  the  careful  reading  and,  we  believe,  the  active 
support  of  those  who  hope  for  the  rapid  extension  of  free  public 
education." 


80  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

The  editor  of  the  Farm  Home^  Springfield,  says : 

"  This  office  will  take  great  pleasure  in  aiding  you  in  any  pos- 
sible way  in  the  passage  of  the  bill." 

The  editor  of  the  American  Bee  Journal,  Chicago,  says : 

"  I  am  in  hearty  accord  with  your  effort  and  trust  that  it  may 
be  successful." 

The  editor  of  the  Farmers'  Review,  Chicago,  says: 

"I  consider  this  measure  along  the  right  line.  There  is  no 
doubt  of  the  need  of  greater  activity  along  this  line  for  our  public 
schools.  It  should  be  included  in  every  school  curriculum." 

David    Felmley,    president    Illinois    State    Normal    University, 
Normal : 

"  For  several  years  I  have  been  watching  with  great  interest 
the  gradual  evolution  of  what  is  now  known  as  the  Page  voca- 
tional bill.  In  this  normal  school  we  are  now  maintaining  strong 
departments  of  agriculture,  manual  training,  and  domestic 
science.  Nine  teachers  are  now  employed  in  these  branches  ex- 
clusively. We  shall  be  glad  of  the  additional  funds  that  the 
bill  promises  for  further  development  of  this  department  This 
institution  is  thoroughly  committed  to  training  teachers  in  the 
so-called  vocational  branches,  and  we  heartily  approve  of  your 
bill,  especially  of  the  provision  for  the  aid  to  State  normal 
schools." 

D.  B.  Parkinson,  president  Southern  Illinois  State  Normal  Uni- 
versity, Carbondale: 

"  Your  favor  of  recent  date  received.  I  am  very  grateful  for 
a  copy  of  the  complete  bill  relative  to  the  special  provision  for 
the  department  of  agriculture  and  home  economics.  I  am  per- 
sonally very  much  interested  in  this  bill,  and  was  glad  to  be 
present  in  St.  Louis  this  week  when  the  normal  school  section 
indorsed  said  bill,  a  notice  of  which  will  doubtless  be  sent  you. 
From  my  point  of  view,  the  provisions  of  the  bill  are  most  ex- 
cellent and  will  be  of  great  benefit  to  the  country.  I  most  earn- 
estly hope  that  it  soon  may  become  a  law." 

Miss  Mary  D.  Chambers,  Rockford  College,  Rockford: 

"  I  have  read  your  bill  with  nothing  short  of  enthusiastic  de- 
light. My  only  wonder  is  that  provision  has  not  been  made  for 
the  teaching  of  these  subjects  years  and  years  ago.  We  have  been 
following  the  stars  and  their  courses  in  our  educational  curricula 
and  ignoring  the  things  that  make  for  human  welfare. 

"  It  is  needless  to  say  that  the  success  of  this  measure  has  my 
heartfelt  wishes." 

L.  B.  Eidmann,  lecturer,  Patrons  of  Husbandry,  State  Grange  of 
Illinois,  Mascoutah: 

"  I  heartily  indorse  the  bill  and  shall  use  my  influence  to  aid 
in  the  passage  of  the  same." 


VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION.  81 

INDIANA. 

Hon.  Thomas  R.  Marshall,  governor  of  Indiana,  Indianapolis : 

"  I  have  read  with  much  interest  the  document  touching  the 
Page  vocational  bill.  I  have  never  been  quite  sure  whether  it 
was  the  duty  of  the  General  Government  to  furnish  higher  edu- 
cation ;  but  if  it  is,  I  am  quite  sure  it  could  put  money  to  no  better 
use  than  vocational  training.  The  farmer  and  the  skilled  me- 
chanic will  soon  be  as  great  a  curiosity  in  America  as  the  stone 
man  if  something  be  not  done  to  render  labor  not  only  honorable 
but  attractive." 

Charles  A.  Greathouse,  State  superintendent  of  public  instruction, 
says  : 

"  The  measure  you  are  supporting  is  certainly  a  valuable  one." 

IOWA. 

Albert  M.  Deyoe,  State  superintendent  of  public  instruction,  Des 
Moines,  says: 

"  I  wish  to  thank  you  for  a  copy  of  Senate  bill  3.  I  heartily 
approve  of  this  measure,  and  wish  to  assure  you  that  you  may 
depend  upon  my  support  in  bringing  about  its  passage. 

"  I  believe  that  encouragement  and  assistance  from  a  national 
source  would  be  a  great  incentive  to  the  promotion  of  vocational 
training  in  all  the  States.  I  believe  there  is  no  issue  of  more 
vital  importance  in  the  United  States  to-day  than  the  matter  of 
constructive  legislation  along  educational  lines." 

H.  H.  Seerley,  chairman  national  committee  on  agricultural  edu- 
cation, and  president  of  the  Iowa  State  Teachers'  College,  Ames,  says : 

"  The  education  of  the  whole  people  is  so  important  and  the 
training  of  teachers  to  do  the  work  is  so  imperative  that  the 
United  States  should  have  a  hand  in  the  business.  The  State 
superintendents  and  the  State  normal  schools  give  their  enthusi- 
astic support  to  the  Page  bill.  It  ought  to  be  treated  as  one  of 
the  greatest  measures  of  this  age,  as  it  means  the  betterment  of 
the  whole  country. 

"Appropriations  thus  made  will  help  the  people  to  be  self- 
reliant,  self-directive,  and  self-supporting,  and,  in  the  end,  bring 
returns  in  citizenship  and  in  prosperity  that  can  not  be  estimated. 
The  making  of  this  measure  into  the  law  of  the  land  would  pro- 
duce a  revolution  in  educational  lines  that  would  create  a  new 
era  of  enterprise  and  progress. 

"  Our  present  legislature  is  passing  a  bill  that  will  introduce 
to  a  limited  extent  agriculture  and  domestic  arts  into  at  least 
100  high  schools  during  the  coming  year.  This  will  be  a  step  in 
the  right  direction,  but  the  problem  involves  matters  of  such 
great  importance  to  the  country  industrially  that  such  slow 
procedure  is  hardly  satisfactory. 

"  I  trust  that  the  National  Government  may  see  fit  to  become 
cooperator  in  educational  advancement  as  well  as  in  other  lines 
already  so  thoroughly  indorsed." 

49159— S.  Doc.  845,  62-2 6 


82  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

G.   F.   Curtiss,  of  the  Iowa  State   College  of  Agriculture  and 
Mechanic  Arts,  says : 

"  I  am  pleased  to  give  the  bill  my  hearty  indorsement.  The 
public-school  system  of  America  is  lamentably  weak  in  failing 
to  make  provision  for  this  kind  of  education.  The  United  States 
can  not  hope  to  hold  a  leading  place  among  the  industrial  nations 
without  the  training  of  young  men  for  efficient  service  in  indus- 
trial work. 

"  This  problem  lies  at  the  foundation  of  industrial  prosperity 
in  all  sections  of  our  country,  and  the  passage  of  this  measure  is 
of  vital  importance  and  ought  not  to  be  long  delayed." 

J.  F.  Monk,  of  Tobin  College,  Iowa,  says : 

"  We  sincerely  trust  that  you  may  be  able  to  secure  the  legis- 
lation of  this  character,  for  a  comparatively  small  investment 
along  these  lines  will  certainly  bring  immense  returns  in  the 
future." 

The  editor  of  Pierce's  Farm  Weeklies,  of  Des  Moines,  the  Iowa 
Homestead,  Wisconsin  Farmer,  and  Farmer  and  Stockman,  says: 

"  We  are  greatly  interested  in  this  matter,  and  intend  to  com- 
ment quite  liberally  upon  your  bill  in  an  early  number  of 
Pierce's  Farm  Weeklies." 

The  editor  of  the  Creamery  Journal,  of  Waterloo,  says : 

"  It  seems  to  me  that  you  have  struck  a  very  important  line  of 
work.  There  is  no  question  whatever  but  that  the  Government 
should  take  an  active  part  in  this  great  educational  movement, 
and  you  may  count  upon  us  for  support." 

The  editor  of  Successful  Farming,  Des  Moines,  writes : 

"  The  prosperity  of  the  world  depends  on  successful  farming, 
and  successful  farming  depends  upon  the  rural  schools.  I  hope 
your  efforts  will  meet  with  success." 

The  editor  of  Kimball's  Dairy  Farmer  of  Waterloo,  says : 

"  You  are  to  be  most  heartily  congratulated  upon  having  intro- 
duced a  bill  of  such  far-reaching  significance.  Your  bill  most 
certainly  ought  to  pass,  and  you  may  count  upon  us  to  do  what- 
ever we  can  to  promote  its  popularity." 

"  I  have  been  in  position  to  know  the  need  of  instruction  of 
this  kind.  In  every  village,  town,  and  city  there  are  many  young 
people  to  whom  the  public  schools  are  distasteful  because  they  do 
not  offer  work  that  is  of  vital  interest  in  fighting  the  battle  for 
bread. 

"  The  purpose  of  such  schools  is  to  develop  citizens.  The 
courses  that  are  being  offered  tend  to  stimulate  mental  activity 
and  to  cultivate  an  appreciation  of  literature  and  art.  Both  of 
these  are  commendable  but  they  are  scarcely  sufficient  in  them- 
selves, and  until  we  give  the  young  people  of  this  country  a 
little  training  that  wrill  help  them  to  provide  means  whereby  they 
can  enjoy  these  finer  things  of  life  we  have  not  done  our  duty. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  83 

"  There  are  many  boys  who  find  their  school  work  distasteful 
because  it  is  so  largely  theoretical.  If  these  same  young  people 
could  be  trained  to  use  the  hand  as  well  as  the  brain  their  interest 
would  be  intensified  and  they  would  continue  their  school  work 
longer  than  many  are  now  doing.  I  can  testify  to  all  of  the 
above  from  actual  schoolroom  experience. 

"Another  thing  that  should  commend  this  bill  and  secure 
its  passage  is  the  benefit  that  it  will  be  to  the  agricultural  in- 
dustry. It  is  a  trite  saying  that  prosperity  goes  on  crutches 
when  crops  go  wrong.  Farming  is  fundamental  to  national 
prosperity,  but  the  farms  of  to-day  are  different  from  the  farms 
of  20  years  ago,  and  the  farmer  01  to-day  has  problems  to  solve 
which  the  farmer  two  decades  ago  knew  nothing  about. 

"  Conservation  of  the  soil  is  more  vital  than  conservation  of 
any  other  natural  resources.  The  problems  that  are  meeting 
the  farmers  to-day  are  only  a  foretaste  of  those  that  will  confront 
the  farmer  20  years  from  now.  If  we  are  to  continue  to  enjoy 
prosperity  we  must  equip  farmers  of  future  generations  with  a 
knowledge  of  fundamental  principles  that  will  make  it  possible 
for  them  to  meet  the  problems  of  larger  production  and  better 
care  of  land  and  crops. 

"  The  funds  which  this  bill  provides  for  carrying  on  the  work 
that  it  outlines  should  not  stand  in  the  way  of  its  passage.  They 
are  so  infinitesimal  when  compared  with  the  benefits  that  are 
to  be  derived  that  they  are  scarcely  worthy  of  consideration. 

"  If  the  people  of  the  United  States  are  to  continue  to  hold 
the  enviable  position  which  they  now  enjoy  they  must  meet  such 
problems  in  a  businesslike  manner.  The  farmers  and  taxpayers 
generally  should  be  anxious  to  provide  for  the  measure." 

John  H.  T.  Main,  president,  Grinnell  College,  Grinnell: 

"  I  have  your  letter  of  February  22,  together  with  Senate  bill 
No.  3.  I  have  read  the  bill  with  a  great  deal  of  interest  and 
wish  to  assure  you  that  I  thoroughly  approve  of  it.  I  have 
always  been  in  favor  of  Federal  appropriations  for  education. 
Fifteen  million  dollars  annually  for  this  purpose  is  small  as 
compared  with  the  money  appropriated  for  some  other  pur- 
poses that  seem  to  many  people  not  so  important  as  the  money 
appropriated  for  them  seems  to  indicate." 

Dr.  Francis  L.  Strickland,  president,  Simpson  College,  Indianola: 

"  I  thank  you  for  sending  me  the  bill  on  vocational  education 
and  the  report  of  the  subcommittee  of  the  Senate. 

"Education,  to  serve  the  highest  purposes  of  the  Republic, 
must  keep  very  close  to  the  life  of  the  people.  When  an  educa- 
tional institution  is  out  of  touch  with  the  life  of  community  in 
which  it  exists,  its  days  are  numbered.  I  am  very  glad  that  the 
Federal  Government  is  to  cooperate  in  this  big  and  important 
business." 

S.  A.  Beach,  professor  and  vice  dean  department  of  horticulture 
and  forestry,  Iowa  College  and  Experiment  Station,  Ames : 

"  I  have  your  favor  concerning  the  Page  bill  (S.  3).  I  assure 
you  that  this  bill  has  my  hearty  indorsement  and  I  shall  be 
pleased  to  do  whatever  I  can  to  assist  in  securing  its  passage." 


84  VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION. 

KANSAS. 

E.  T.  Fairchild,  superintendent  of  public  instruction  for  the  State 
of  Kansas,  Topeka,  says : 

"I  have  just  received  your  favor  of  June  26  and  a  copy  of 
Senate  bill  3.  I  have  read  this  with  much  interest,  and  am  glad 
to  state  that  it  seems  to  me  to  be  a  most  worthy  measure.  I 
am  heartily  in  sympathy  with  the  motto  '  more  books  and  fewer 
battleships?  " 

The  editor  of  the  Western  School  Journal,  of  Topeka,  says: 

"  I  have  looked  through  the  bill,  and  it  seems  to  me  it  ought 
to  pass." 

The  editor  of  the  Missouri  Valley  Farmer,  Topeka,  says : 

"  Your  bill  seems  designed  to  correct  a  great  evil,  and  the 
Government  may  well  concern  itself  about  the  matter." 

Joseph  H.  Hill,  president,  Kansas  State  Normal  School,  Emporia : 

"  I  wish  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  the  report  of  the  sub- 
committee of  the  committee  on  agriculture  and  vocational  edu- 
cation, and  in  accordance  with  your  request  I  am  very  glad  to 
say  that  I  am  in  general  sympathy  with  the  purposes  of  the  bill 
mentioned." 

R.  T.  Campbell,  president,  Cooper  College,  Sterling: 

"  Have  read  with  interest  the  copy  of  your  proposed  bill 
touching  instruction  of  agriculture  and  home  economics  in  sec- 
ondary schools.  I  am  glad  to  lend  my  indorsement  to  the  pro- 
posed bill,  and  believe  its  passage  would  mean  much  for  the 
majority  of  our  boys  and  girls." 

A.   M.   Ten   Eyck,   superintendent   Fort  Hays    Branch   Experi- 
ment Station  of  the  Kansas  State  Agricultural  College,  Hays : 

"  I  have  carefully  read  the  Page  vocational  education  bill.  It 
is  a  magnificent  proposition,  which,  if  carried  out,  will  mean 
more  to  this  country  in  the  next  10  years  in  the  way  of  material, 
industrial,  and  educational  advancement  than  any  brain  can  now 
conceive. 

"  The  feature  which  I  especially  like  about  this  bill  is  the 
splendid  aid  which  will  be  given  toward  teaching  the  teachers 
to  teach  agriculture,  and  in  bringing  instruction  in  agriculture 
to  the  masses  of  the  people  rather  than  to  the  6  or  7  per  cent 
who  are  able  to  secure  a  college  or  university  training. 

"  I  am  an  agricultural  college  and  experiment  station  worker. 
I  am  spending  my  life  in  the  work  of  these  institutions.  But 
the  Page  bill  treats  pur  State  colleges  and  experiment  stations 
royally,  besides  making  possible  this  greater  and  more  impor- 
tant work — the  industrial  education  of  nine-tenths  of  our  people 
who  can  never  attend  our  higher  schools  and  colleges." 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  85 

KENTUCKY. 

Barksdale  Hamlett,  superintendent  public  instruction,  Hopkiris- 
ville,  says  : 

"  I  have  no  hesitancy  in  stating  on  behalf  of  the  people  in 
Kentucky,  and  especially  those  who  are  alive  to  educational 
needs,  that  we  regard  this  as  one  of  the  most  important  measures 
before  the  present  Congress  and  sincerely  hope  that  it  will  be 
passed  at  an  early  date  and  signed  by  the  President.  I  believe- 
that  the  passage  of  this  bill,  even  though  the  appropriation  will 
be  small  compared  with  the  other  great  governmental  expendi- 
tures, will  do  more  for  the  cause  of  agricultural  interests  than 
anything  that  has  been  done  in  the  past  50  years.  I  sincerely 
hope  that  it  will  be  passed." 

J.  G.  Crabbe,  president,  Eastern  Kentucky  State  Normal,  Rich- 
mond, says: 

"  I  regret  that  previous  engagements  prevented  my  attending 
conference  behalf  of  Page  bill  (S.  3).  I  beg  to  assure  the  con- 
ference that  Kentucky  educators  believe  this  bill  is  vitally  impor- 
tant to  a  broader  national  view  and  responsibility  as  to  fitting 
our  children  for  successful  life. 

"It  receives  the  hearty  support  of  educators  throughout  the 
country,  and  in  my  opinion  is  a  very  desirable  measure,  as  the 
questions  involved  are  among  the  most  important  in  present-day 
needs." 

The  Courier  Journal,  Louisville,  says: 

"  The  country  is  gradually  waking  up  to  the  importance  of 
vocational  education.  To  put  such  an  education  within  reach  of 
the  masses  is  a  gigantic  undertaking.  Advocates  of  the  Page 
bill  believe  that  the  measure  presents  the  only  practical  plan 
that  so  far  has  been  devised." 

Ellsworth  Regenstein,  late  State  superintendent  of  public  instruc- 
tion, Frankfort,  says : 

"  Your  letter  of  the  2d  instant,  with  inclosed  copy  of  Senate 
bill  3,  has  been  received.  The  bill  meets  with  my  approval,  and 
I  shall  be  glad  to  cooperate  with  you  in  bringing  about  its 
passage." 

LOUISIANA. 

T.  H.  Harris,  of  the  department  of  education,  Louisiana,  says : 

"  I  have  examined  the  bill  and  wish  to  give  it  my  indorsement. 
I  think  it  is  a  good  one  and  trust  that  it  will  pass  both  Houses. 
I  wish  that  I  could  be  present  in  person  and  render  all  possible 
assistance." 

Brandt   V.   B.    Dixon,   president,   department  of   education   and 
hygiene,  The  Tulane  University  of  Louisiana,  New  Orleans: 

"  Your  bill  in  favor  of  vocational  education  appeals  to  me  very 
strongly.  I  am  not  prepared  to  discuss  the  matter  from  the 
standpoint  of  political  considerations,  but  speaking  as  a  teacher, 


86  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

and  especially  as  a  teacher  of  young  women,  I  approve  most 
heartily  of  any  effort  tending  to  advance  the  practical  and 
vocational  studies. 

"  The  great  need  of  modern  education,  in  my  opinion,  is  that 
it  should  devote  itself  to  the  culture  of  the  will — the  constructive 
processes  of  the  mind — by  means  of  laboratory  methods  espe- 
cially. Our  young  women  should  be  made  more  resourceful,  self- 
reliant,  fitted  for  success,  than  they  are  at  present.  The  same 
amount  of  culture  can  be  secured  as  by  the  methods  now  in  use. 
We  will,  however,  need  to  develop  a  new  race  of  teachers." 

MAINE. 

President  Fellows,  of  the  University  of  Maine,  says: 

"  By  means  of  assistance  proposed  in  this  bill  we  can  accom- 
plish in  five  years  what  would  otherwise  require  a  century." 

Payson  Smith,  superintendent  of  public  schools,  Augusta,  says : 

"  I  have  examined  with  much  care  Senate  bill  3,  which  you  sent 
me  with  a  request  for  suggestion.  I  fail  to  note  any  points  what- 
ever in  which  this  bill  could  be  improved.  It  strikes  me  that  it 
is  so  framed  that  it  meets  most  acceptably  the  varying  conditions 
of  control  of  the  several  States.  I  am  certainly  much  in  favor  of 
the  enactment  of  a  measure  of  this  kind,  and  shall  be  very  happy 
.to  be  of  any  possible  service  in  promoting  its  interests." 

MARYLAND. 

M.  Bates  Stephens,  superintendent,  State  department  of  education 
of  Maryland,  Annapolis : 

"  I  congratulate  you  most  sincerely  on  having  the  bill  favorably 
reported.  It  looks  to  me  like  a  good  omen  for  its  successful 
passage. 

"  Let  me  know  any  time  I  can  serve  you  in  promoting  the  bill 
in  any  way." 

B.  H.  Crocheron,  principal  of  the  agricultural  high  school  of 
Sparks,,  says: 

"  I  am  greatly  obliged  to  you  for  the  literature  relative  to  the 
Page  bill,  concerning  which  I  am  exceedingly  hopeful.  I,  of 
course,  believe  in  the  bill,  and  am  doing  all  possible  to  bring  it 
before  the  people.  I  hope  to  secure  its  consideration  at  the 
National  Country  Life  Congress  to  be  held  at  Spokane  November 
23-29." 

James  B.  Hessong,  secretary  Baltimore  Chamber  of  Commerce, 
Baltimore : 

"At  a  meeting  of  the  board  of  directors  of  the  Baltimore 
Chamber  of  Commerce  held  on  the  llth  instant,  a  report  was 
submitted  by  our  crop  improvement  committee  regarding  Senate 
bill  No.  3,  as  amended,  now  before  Congress. 

"We  consider  this  bill,  if  passed,  will  be  of  great  advantage  to 
Maryland,  and  our  board  desires  to  call  your  attention  to  same 
with  the  request  that  you  support  it  with  your  vote  and  in- 
fluence." 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  87 

MASSACHUSETTS. 

M.  L.  Burton,  president  Smith  College,  Northampton: 

"Senate  bill  No.  3  with  the  report  of  the  subcommittee  on 
vocational  education  reached  me  in  due  time  and  I  have  read  it 
with  the  deepest  interest.  Of  course,  it  is  impossible  for  me  to 
enter  into  the  details  of  the  actual  administration  of  the  bill, 
but  I  can  not  tell  you  how  thoroughly  and  heartily  I  approve 
of  the  general  plan  which  is  involved.  I  believe  there  is  noth- 
ing more  fundamental  for  the  American  Nation  in  the  future 
than  that  there  should  be  Federal  aid  for  agricultural  and 
vocational  education.  It  lies  at  the  very  basis  of  our  whole 
national  life.  In  saying  this  I,  of  course,  do  not  mean  for  a 
moment  that  our  colleges  of  liberal  arts  should  be  altered  or 
that  their  ideals  should  be  changed,  but  merely  that  alongside 
of  our  present  educational  system  there  should  be  fine  oppor- 
tunities for  every  boy  and  girl  to  equip  themselves  for  work  on 
the  farm,  in  the  shop,  and  in  the  home.  I  am  with  you  in  this 
matter  and  appreciate  very  highly  the  work  you  are  doing." 

L.  H.  Murlin,  president  Boston  University,  Boston: 

"  I  have  been  quite  interested  in  your  bill  providing  for  a 
Federal  appropriation  to  encourage  vocational  education.  I 
most  heartily  agree  with  the  principles  involved.  I  should  not 
want  any  reflection  made  upon  the  old  ideal  of  education — the 
study  of  the  classics,  and  mathematics;  but  I  quite  agree  with 
you  that  wider  educational  opportunity  should  be  offered  in 
elementary  education." 

Louis  H.  Buckley,  chairman  board  of  trustees,  Worcester  Trade 
School,  Worcester : 

"  I  will  be  glad  to  hold  myself  in  readiness  to  assist  you  in 
any  way  possible  in  the  advancement  of  the  passage  of  this  bill. 

"  I  hope  that  you  may  be  successful  in  your  efforts  to  enact  this 
bill  which  promises  so  much  for  the  advancement  of  agricultural 
and  industrial  education  in  our  country." 

Miss  Alice  J.  Bunce,  director  Mack  Industrial  School,  Salem : 

"  Have  received  a  copy  of  Senate  bill  No.  3  and  also  the  re- 
port of  the  subcommittee  on  agriculture  and  forestry. 

"  I  most  heartily  approve  of  the  bill  and  believe  that  the  pas- 
sage of  such  a  bill  would  improve  our  country's  condition  and 
would  well  repay  the  money  to  be  spent." 

G.  M.  Winslow,  principal  Lasell   Seminary  for  Young  Women, 
Auburndale : 

"I  have  been  much  interested  in  looking  over  the  bill  which 
you  have  introduced  into  Congress  for  the  advancement  in  in- 
struction in  agriculture,  trades,  and  household  economics. 

"  For  many  years  our  school  has  been  giving  special  attention 
to  preparing  young  women  for  home  making,  consequently  we 
feel  that  in  this  department  you  are  giving  a  big  boost  to  one 
of  our  pet  ideas. 

"  No  work  which  we  have  done  has  seemed  to  us  more  worth 

While*    ir»    ifc   t*acnilfa   than    thp   Vialr*   WA   Via-vro   Kfif»n    oKlo   tr\    rriira   mr* 


88  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

students  in  the  way  of  fitting  them  directly  for  the  work  which 
they  are  bound  to  have  later. 

"  Your  bill  if  carried  through  will  do  the  same  thing  in  a 
broader  field.  If  carried  out  in  the  same  spirit,  this  bill  will  be 
comparable  in  its  beneficent  results  to  the  Morrill  bill,  which 
every  Vermonter  refers  to  with  pride  as  a  work  of  a  fellow 
statesman." 

James  A.   McKibben,   secretary   Boston   Chamber   of  Commerce, 
Boston : 

"  The  committee  on  education  of  the  Boston  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce has  carefully  considered  Senate  bill  No.  3,  giving  Federal 
aid  to  education  in  industry,  agriculture,  and  the  domestic  arts 
in  the  secondary  schools  of  the  several  States,  and  believes  it  to 
be  one  of  the  most  important  measures  which  has  been  before 
Congress  this  year. 

"  The  passage  of  this  bill  would  stimulate  further  efforts  in 
those  States  in  which  vocational  education  is  already  provided 
and  it  would  encourage  this  important  type  of  education  in  the 
States  that  are  now  ^00  poor  or  too  indifferent  to  take  the  initia- 
tive themselves.  Above  all,  it  will  focus  public  attention  in  the 
best  way  possible  upon  the  important  part  in  the  development 
of  the  United  States  which  sound  vocational  education  is  certain 
to  play.  The  bill  is  so  framed  as  to  encourage  gradual  and 
sound  development  of  the  right  types  of  vocation  education. 

"The  measure  is  so  safeguarded  that  the  Federal  money  is 
not  likely  to  be  wasted;  and  with  such  bodies  as  the  National 
Society  for  the-  Promotion  of  Industrial  Education  and  the 
National  Association  of  Manufacturers  watching  the  work  of 
the  law  and  aiding  the  States  in  carrying  it  out,  there  is  every 
reason  to  believe  that  the  results  of  this  legislation  will  be  far- 
reaching. 

"The  directors  of  the  chamber  at  their  meeting  on  May  9 
unanimously  adopted  the  report  of  the  committee  on  education, 
recommending  that  the  chamber  heartily  indorse  this  bill.  I 
trust  that  you  will  use  your  influence  in  promoting  the  passage 
of  this  bill!" 

John    Golden,    general    president    United    Textile    Workers    of 
America,  Fall  River  : 

"  I  am  taking  this  means  of  informing  you  that,  as  a  member 
of  the  executive  committee  of  the  National  Society  for  the  Pro- 
motion of  Industrial  Education,  and  also  on  behalf  of  the  inter- 
national organization  I  represent,  that  I  am  heartily  in  favor 
of  the  bill  introduced  in  your  name  bearing  on  industrial  edu- 
cation." 

The  Weekly  Bulletin,  Boston,  says : 

"  The  educational  bill  recently  introduced  in  the  United  States 
Senate  by  Senator  Page,  of  Vermont,  is  printed  in  full  in  this 
week's  issue.  The  scope  of  this  bill  and  the  good  that  it  is 
intended  to  do  the  young  people  of  the  United  States  is  of 
tremendous  importance  and  shows  a  policy  on  the  part  of  Sen- 
ator Page  of  endeavoring  to  carry  through  one  of  the  best  meas- 
ures which  this  countrv  has  everv  seen." 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION-.  89 

Herbert  Myrick,  president  National  League  for  Industrial  Educa- 
tion, and  editor  of  the  Orange  Judd  Agricultural  Weekly,  at  Spring- 
field, says : 

"  Rest  assured  that  not  only  our  periodicals  but  our  entire  or- 
ganization will  do  every  thing  possible  to  promote  this  beneficent 
bill." 

Deputy  Commissioner  C.  A.  Prosser,  of  the  State  board  of  edu- 
cation, says: 

"  The  vocational  school  differs  from  the  regular  high  school  in 
aim,  content,  method,  and  social  function.  The  high  school 
gives  general  training  for  life;  the  vocational  gives  specific 
training  for  a  definite  calling.  The  difference  is  organized 
knowledge  with  deferred  values  as  contrasted  with  applied 
knowledge  and  immediate  values.  The  method  of  the  high 
school  is  abstract  and  formal;  that  of  the  vocational  concrete 
and  direct. 

"  The  two  should  not  be  regarded  as  competitive,  but  as  par- 
allel institutions,  each  tapping  a  different  school  strata." 

The  Commercial  Bulletin,  Boston,  says : 

"  The  bill  introduced  by  Senator  Carroll  S.  Page,  of  Vermont, 
to  encourage  instruction  in  agriculture,  the  trades  and  indus- 
tries, and  home  economics  in  secondary  schools,  is  still  pending 
before  Congress. 

"  There  is  no  doubt  that  industrial  education  is  not  developed 
to  anything  like  the  extent  to  which  it  might  well  be  developed 
in  this  country,  and  if  we  are  to  remain  in  the  front  rank  of 
manufacturing  nations,  we  must  have  not  only  the  best  machinery 
in  the  world,  but  also  the  best-trained  hands  and  brains  to 
operate  it. 

"  Whether  Senator  Page's  bill  will  accomplish  all  that  is  hoped 
from  it  is,  of  course,  uncertain,  but  it  is  gratifying  to  note  that 
the  legislative  branch  of  our  National  Government  is  devoting 
intelligent  thought  to  a  problem  that  is  as  serious  and  important 
as  any  bill  that  can  come  before  them,  as  it  concerns  the  welfare 
and  progress  of  our  people." 

The  Journal  of  Education,  of  Boston,  says: 

"A  bill  of  considerable  interest  to  educators,  and  especially 
to  those  engaged  in  vocational  training,  was  introduced  in  the 
United  States  Senate  last  April  by  Senator  Page,  of  Vermont. 
As  the  bill  is  framed,  it  seems  to  be  in  shape  for  final  passage, 
and  it  is  certainly  a  bill  that  we  should  like  to  see  made  into  a 
law.  Its  provisions  are  generous,  and  it  would  stir  up  all  those 
States  that  are  in  need  of  an  incentive  along  the  lines  of  indus- 
trial education  and  vocational  training." 

Lewis  C.  Grandy,  editor  the  Printing  Art,  Cambridge,  says: 

"We  have  read  with  much  interest  the  copy  of  the  bill  you 
recently  introduced  in  the  Senate  to  encourage  instruction  in 
agriculture,  the  trades,  industries,  etc.  There  is  a  great  need  of 
the  Government  undertaking  this  work. 


90  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

"  It  is  obvious  that  there  is  great  need  for  more  industrial 
schools  in  this  country,  such  as  those  in  which  German  workmen 
are  trained.  The  establishment  of  such  schools  can  be  brought 
about  if  a  determined  effort  is  made.  A  comprehensive  plan 
for  education  along  agricultural  and  industrial  lines  is  included 
in  a  bill  Senator  Page,  of  Vermont,  has  recently  introduced  in 
the  United  States  Senate.  This  may  not  be  entirely  satisfactory 
to  everyone  and  some  of  the  details  can  perhaps  be  amended 
slightly,  but  its  general  purpose  is  such  that  it  should  receive 
hearty  support." 

Horticulture,  published  a*t  Boston,  says:  , 

"  Senate  bill  3,  by  Senator  Carroll  S.  Page,  now  in  the  hands 
of  the  Committee  on  Agriculture  and  Forestry,  provides  for 
Government  aid  to  the  States  in  promoting  a  better  system  of  edu- 
cation along  agricultural  and  industrial  lines  and  home  eco- 
nomics. The  problem  of  wise  and  efficient  training  of  young 
men  and  young  women,  always  a  paramount  one,  becomes  now 
more  serious  than  ever,  under  the  restrictions  on  a  broad-gauge, 
mechanical  knowledge  imposed  by  existing  factory  methods  in 
the  division  of  labor  and  by  labor  union  prescriptions.  The  high 
school,  the  academy,  and  the  college  are  taking  excellent  care  of 
those  boys  who  are  financially  able  to  avail  themselves  of  their 
advantages,  but  for  him  who  can  not,  little  remains  but  the  pros- 
pect of  a  cneap  manhood.  If  the  entry  of  the  National  Govern- 
ment into  a  comprehensive  and  liberal  cooperation  with  the 
States  for  instruction  in  agriculture  and  the  trades  will  modify 
and  improve  these  defects  in  pur  industrial  system,  then  by  all 
means  let  us  have  it,  even  if  it  becomes  necessary  to  economize 
by  cutting  out  a  battleship  or  two.  It  is  an  excellent  measure, 
and  we  hope  it  will  receive  a  favorable  reception  everywhere." 

Max  Mitchell,  superintendent  of  Federated  Jewish  Charities,  Bos- 
ton, Mass.,  says: 

"  I  am  very  much  interested  in  this  bill  and  want  to  add  a 
word  of  indorsement  for  the  passage  of  the  bill,  which  tries  to 
cooperate  with  the  States  in  encouraging  instruction  in  agricul- 
ture, trades,  and  industries. 

"  In  the  work  that  I  am  doing  I  have  for  many  years  felt  the 
great  need  of  work  of  this  kind.  I  feel  that  the  poor  boy  does 
not  get  a  fair  chance  or  an  equal  chance  with  the  rich  boy  or  the 
boy  of  the  well-to-do  parents  to  obtain  a  proper  education.  In 
the  early  years,  when  the  child  is  14  and  upward,  when  he  is 
about  to  get  the  understanding  of  an  education,  he  must  go  to 
work  and  earn  enough  to  help  support  his  home.  He  is  thus 
cut  short  at  the  most  important  time  from  continuing  his  studies. 

"  I  believe  in  giving  education  to  the  great  masses  of  this 
great  country  instead  of  the  small  number  of  10  per  cent,  as  is 
given  to-day. 

"  To  my  mind  no  expenditure  is  too  large  that  gives  the  people 
of  the  country  a  proper  understanding  of  themselves,  of  the 
conditions  surrounding  them,  and  especially  a  proper  under- 
standing and  a  love  for  whatever  professional  trade  they  are 
engaged  in,  because  with  that  kind  of  education,  I  am  sure, 


VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION.  91 

develops  a  love  for  one's  country  and  for  one's  neighbors  and  for 
mankind  in  general." 

MICHIGAN. 

Hon.  Chase  S.  Osborn,  governor  of  Michigan,  writes: 

"  Your  bill  to  cooperate  with  the  various  States  in  encourag- 
ing instruction  in  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  domestic 
economics  in  secondary  schools,  etc.,  is  a  good  measure  in  my 
opinion.  No  nation  is  better  or  stronger  than  the  average  of  its 
people.  The  activity  you  seek  to  encourage  is  necessary,  and  I 
hope  sincerely  that  your  bill  will  pass." 

Jesse  B.  Davis,  principal  Central  High  School,  Grand  Kapids, 

says: 

"  My  attention  has  been  called  to  your  bill  to  encourage  voca- 
tional education  among  the  States  in  secondary  schools.  I  have 
read  the  bill  with  much  interest  and  wish  to  express  my  appre- 
ciation of  your  efforts  in  this  most  worthy  cause.  My  expe- 
rience of  over  16  years  in  the  largest  secondary  schools  of  the 
West  has  made  me  a  strong  supporter  of  this  phase  of  modern 
education." 

The  editor  of  the  Michigan  Tradesman,  Grand  Rapids,  says: 

"  I  am  very  glad  to  commend  this  measure  both  personally 
and  editorially,  because  I  believe  it  is  in  the  interest  of  progres- 
sive citizenship  and  good  Americanism." 

James    H.    Kaye,    president    Northern    State    Normal    School, 
Marquette : 

"  I  received  a  copy  of  your  bill  and  the  report  of  the  Com- 
mittee on  Agriculture  and  Forestry. 

"  I  believe  in  the  provisions  of  the  bill  most  sincerely,  and  I 
trust  that  it  will  be  passed.  Should  this  bill  pass  I  believe  it 
will  mark  a  great  epoch  in  educational  advancement  in  the 
United  States." 

Fannie  E.  Beal,  teacher  of  home  economics,  Addison : 

"  The  copy  of  the  Page  vocational  educational  bill  has  reached 
me,  and  I  wish  to  say  that  I  heartily  indorse  the  bill.  As  a 
teacher  of  home  economics  in  secondary  schools  I  believe  that 
every  girl  needs  a  training  in  the  affairs  of  the  home  and  that 
she  should  be  required  to  take  such  a  training." 

Clara  Wheeler,  principal  Kindergarten  Training  School,  Grand 
Rapids : 

"  In  reply  to  your  letter  and  documents  of  February  29  I  write 
to  say  that  I  am  interested  in  vocational  education.  I  also  favor 
the  general  purposes  of  the  bill  known  as  the  Page  vocational 
bill." 

W.  H.  French,  department  of  agricultural  education,  Michigan 
Agricultural  College,  East  Lansing: 

"  I  have  read  the  amended  bill  very  carefully,  and  I  think  your 
corrections  have  removed  all  of  the  objections  stated  in  my 


92  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

former  letter.  The  bill  in  its  present  form  seems  all  right,  and 
if  it  should  become  a  law  it  would  certainly  stimulate  the  teaching 
of  agriculture  to  a  very  large  degree." 

MINNESOTA. 

Hon.  Moses  E.  Clapp,  United  States  Senator  from  Minnesota,  says: 

"Am  in  receipt  of  your  proposed  bill.  Permit  me  to  say  that 
while  arbitration  treaties  and  trust  regulation  laws  may  com- 
mand more  attention,  there  is  no  measure  pending  before  Con- 
gress that  exceeds  in  importance  your  bill,  because  it  goes  to  the 
very  foundation  of  all  our  national  problems,  the  development  of 
the  citizen.  If  the  Republic  will  care  for  the  youth  of  the  land 
to-day,  the  youth  will  care  for  the  Republic." 

A.  F.  Woods,  dean  and  director  at  the  University  of  Minnesota, 
St.  Paul,  says: 

"  Executive  council  of  the  department  of  agriculture  of  the 
University  of  Minnesota,  consisting  of  the  dean  and  chiefs  of 
divisions,  indorses  the  Page  bill  (S.  3),  first,  because  it  gives  as- 
sistance through  already  organized  educational  agencies ;  second, 
it  includes  most  agencies  that  need  aid  in  reorganization  for  in- 
dustrial education;  third,  it  is  a  carefully  worked-out  system 
based  on  actually  existing  conditions ;  fourth,  the  McKinley  and 
McLaughlin  bills  are  good  as  far  as  they  go,  but  relate  only  to 
part  of  the  problem." 

The  editor  of  the  Daily  Record,  of  St.  Paul,  says : 

"  We  are  very  much  interested  in  this  bill,  and  think  it  should 
have  the  support  of  everybody." 

Charles  P.  Craig,  of  Duluth,  uses  this  language : 

"  To  my  mind  no  other  bill  pending  before  Congress  is  so 
important  to  this  country  at  large  in  a  constructive  way  as  this 
bill,  because  its  purpose  is  to  lay  the  foundation  broad  by  the 
training  of  all  the  youth  of  the  Nation  for  constructive  work. 

"  Vocational  education  will  not  down.  The  people  are 
awakening  to  its  value,  and  with  that  awakening  grow  more 
determined  that  a  national  policy  of  secondary  education  shall 
be  established,  just  as  has  been  done  with  higher  industrial 
education;  consequently  your  bill  admirably  fits  the  growing 
popular  demand.  Politics  and  selfish  interests  may  postpone 
but  will  never  prevent,  ultimately,  the  passage  of  this  or  a 
similar  bill. 

"  Of  my  own  knowledge  I  know  of  foreign-born  parents  in 
our  city  of  Duluth  who  have  sent  their  sons  back  to  the  old 
country  to  learn  a  trade,  with  the  purpose  of  coming  back  here 
and  being  skilled  tradesmen." 

A.  D.  Wilson,  superintendent  University  Farm,  St.  Paul,  says: 

"  Your  letter  of  December  7  received.  This  morning  we  took 
up  at  our  executive  council  meeting,,  consisting  of  the  heads 
or  divisions  in  our  institution,  the  matter  of  the  Page  bill,  S.  3. 
We  sent  you  a  telegram  expressing  our  views  in  favor  of  the  bill. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  93 

We  certainly  believe  in  the  Page  bill,  and  are  ready  to  give  any 
assistance  we  can  to  secure  its  passage." 

C.  G.  Schulz,  superintendent  department  of  public  instruction, 
St.  Paul,  says: 

"  I  heartily  approve  the  provisions  of  this  measure.  It  is 
along  the  same  lines  as  those  in  which  Minnesota  has  under- 
taken to  foster  that  work  in  connection  with  high  schools, 
secondary  agricultural  schools,  and  the  college  of  agriculture. 

"  I  am  fully  satisfied  that  the  plan  outlined  in  your  bill  for 
industrial  training,  not  only  in  secondary  schools  but  in  colleges 
and  normal  schools,  is  practical,  comprehensive,  fair,  and  de- 
manded by  present-day  conditions.  The  school  must  be  a  train- 
ing institution  which  directs  the  child's  activity  not  only  along 
one  line  but  many.  There  must  also  be  the  means,  in  profes- 
sional schools,  of  fitting  leaders,  directors,  and  teachers.  This 
your  bill  makes  possible." 

The  Minnesota  State  Dairyman's  Association  at  its  annual  con- 
vention held  at  Wadena,  January  16-19,  1912,  passed  the  following 
resolution : 

"  In  view  of  the  need  of  a  more  practical  type  of  education  in 
our  schools  and  the  demonstration  of  improved  methods  of 
production  on  our  farms,  be  it 

"Resolved,  That  this  association  approve  the  Page  bill  intro- 
duced in  the  National  Congress  with  these  ends  in  view.  We 
hereby  request  our  Senators  and  Representatives  to  do  all  in 
their  power  to  secure  the  passage  of  this  measure,  the  secretary 
of  this  association  to  forward  copies  of  this  resolution  to  our 
Senators  and  Representatives,  the  chairman  of  the  Senate  and 
House  Committees  on  Agriculture,  and  to  Senator  Page." 

Lilla  P.  Frich,  supervisor  of  domestic  science,  board  of  education, 
Minneapolis : 

"  Your  letter  of  March  1  and  the  copy  of  Senate  bill  No.  3  is 
received. 

"  This  measure  has  my  hearty  approval,  and  I  trust  there  will 
be  no  difficulty  in  the  passage  of  this  bill." 

Mr.  L.  L.  Everly,  principal  Teachers'  Training  School,  St.  Paul : 

"  Your  letter  of  February  29  inclosing  a  copy  of  Senate  bill 
3  is  at  hand.  I  am  heartily  in  favor  of  this  bill  with  its  sub- 
stantial provisions  for  vocational  and  industrial  education.  I 
believe  no  more  important  bill  will  come  before  this  Congress. 
This  institution  thoroughly  indorses  the  plan  outlined  in  this 
bill." 

Andrew  Boss,  department  of  agriculture,  University  of  Minnesota, 
St.  Paul: 

"  Our  institution  has  stood  squarely  for  your  bill.  We  are  all 
in  accord  on  the  merits  of  the  bill,  and  I  believe  that  it  should  be 
passed.  It  is  so  much  more  comprehensive  than  the  Lever  bill, 
and  still  so  elastic  that  any  State  need  not  be  burdened  with 
financial  difficulties,  that  we  consider  it  decidedly  the  best 


94  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

MISSISSIPPI. 

J.  C.  Hardy,  president  Mississippi  Agricultural  and  Mechanical 
College,  says: 

"  I  am  heartily  in  favor  of  this  bill  for  industrial  and  voca- 
tional education.  While  I  appreciate  the  importance  of  training 
'  captains  of  industry,'  yet  in  my  judgment  there  is  a  still  greater 
need  of  giving  the  '  privates  of  industry  '  that  training  that  will 
fit  them  for  coping  with  modern  industrial  conditions  and  that 
will  make  them  more  efficient  in  dealing  with  alLthe  complex 
problems  of  modern  life.  I  think  the  man  or  woman  who  is 
serving  the  world  by  manual  labor  is  entitled  to  as  much  con- 
sideration by  the  State  and  Nation  as  those  who  are  engaged  in 
the  professions  and  other  intellectual  pursuits. 

"  This  bill,  as  I  view  it,  is  an  effort  to  adapt  education  to  the 
needs  of  the  democracy.  The  State  needs  men  and  women  who 
can  do  things  more  than  it  needs  men  and  women  of  culture. 

"  This  institution  thoroughly  indorses  your  bill,  and  each  and 
every  man  here  stands  ready  to  help  in  every  possible  way  to 
develop  public  sentiment  that  will  demand  its  passage. 

"  Our  people  in  hearty  sympathy  with  the  principle  of  bill. 
It  means  more  to  the  development  of  our  section  than  any  bill 
since  Hatch  Act.  It  has  full  indorsement  of  this  college.  All 
conditions  should  be  fixed  in  bill ;  leave  nothing  to  be  fought  out 
in  the  legislature;  command  us  to  fullest." 

W.  L.  Hutchinson,  dean  of  the  School  of  Agriculture,  Starkville, 
says: 

"  Regret  I  could  not  be  present  at  the  conference  of  the  friends 
of  the  Page  bill;  the  objects  sought  to  be  accomplished  by  the 
bill  are  laudable  and  much  to  be  desired." 

MISSOURI. 

William  P.  Evans,  State  superintendent  of  public  schools,  Jeffer- 
son City,  says: 

"  In  general,  Senate  bill  3,  encouraging  and  aiding  industrial 
education  has  my  hearty  approval.  The  purposes  of  the  measure 
are  very  laudable,  and  I  shall  be  willing  to  lend  my  influence 
toward  securing  its  passage. 

"  We  are  hoping  to  push  in  this  State  rapidly  the  establish- 
ment of  rural  high  schools  and  are  proposing  to  secure  a  per- 
manent fund  for  this  purpose  from  the  voters  "of  Missouri  at  the 
next  general  election.  It  is  this  proposition  that  I  refer  to  in 
my  letter  to  Gov.  Hadley.  The  proposition  for  the  permanent 
education  fund  will  be  voted  upon  at  the  next  general  election, 
under  the  initiative  and  referendum.  This,  you  see,  is  along 
precisely  the  same  lines  as  your  movement  in  Senate  bill  3,  to 
enlarge  the  unit  of  taxation. 

"  In  general,  this  measure  of  Senator  Page's  and  the  measure 
that  we  are  advocating  for  Missouri  is  a  movement  to  enlarge 
the  taxation  unit.  They  are  twin  movements,  one  may  say. 
The  permanent  education  fund  is  a  movement  to  derive 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  95 

from  the  State  at  large  in  order  to  equalize  opportunities  for 
the  weak  districts.  The  same  thing  may  be  said  of  this  national 
movement.  It  is  a  proposition  to  make  the  unit  Nation  wide, 
and  in  this  broad  way  equalize  opportunities  for  all  of  the  youth 
of  the  land. 

"  It  seems  to  me  that  the  bill  should  be  amended  somewhat 
and  should  pass.  I  shall  be  very  glad  if  you  see  fit  to  encourage 
its  adoption,  even  in  its  present  form,  for  provision  is  made, 
you  will  note,  that  each  State  shall  receive  that  portion  of  the 
appropriation  for  which  it  is  prepared,  and  if  the  appropriation 
is  made  for  these  district  high  schools  and  the  district  high 
schools  are  not  established,  we  will  receive  the  other  aid  which 
we  are  ready  for. 

"  I  heartily  favor  the  bill,  except  the  clause  relating  to  district 
agricultural  high  schools.  I  advise  that  the  appropriations  for 
such  schools  be  added  to  that  for  public  secondary  schools  and 
normal  schools  for  brief  reasons  in  a  letter  which  follows." 

W.  G.  Carrington,  State  Normal  School,  fourth  district,  Spring- 
field, says: 

"  I  assure  you  I  am  doing  all  I  can  in  my  territory  to  secure 
support  for  this  measure.  I  am  writing  some  letters  to  our 
Senators  about  it." 

Anthony  Ittner,  of  St.  Louis,  late  chairman  of  the  committee  on 
industrial  education,  National  Association  of  Manufacturers,  says : 

"  The  point  with  me  is  to  have  the  Page  bill  so  framed  as  to 
benefit  the  98  per  cent  of  the  young  men  of  our  country — those 
that  need  help.  The  2  per  cent  that  pass  through  colleges  and 
universities  are  the  sons  of  wealthy  parents  who,  being  able  to 
help  themselves,  do  not  need  help  from  State  government." 

Dr.  Lowell  M.  McAfee,  president  Park  College,  Parkville : 

"  Keplying  to  vours  of  the  22d  of  February,  will  say  I  find 
myself  cordially  in  sympathy  with  the  purposes  of  Senate  bill 
No.  3,  if  I  understand  it  in  detail.  I  agree  with  you  most  cor- 
dially that  the  surest  way  to  save  our  young  fellows  is  to  fit  them 
for  the  experiences  which  are  sure  to  be  theirs.  Park  College 
was  organized  and  has  operated  on  that  basis  for  a  good  many 


years." 


MONTANA. 


J.  M.  Hamilton,  president  Montana  Agricultural  College,  says : 

"  We  heartily  indorse  the  principles  of  Federal  aid  for  second- 
ary industrial  education  as  set  forth  in  the  Page  bill,  and  would 
especially  emphasize  the  features  providing  for  agricultural 
high  schools  and  agricultural  extension." 

F.  B.  Linfield,  director  of  the  Montana  Agricultural  Experiment 
Station,  Bozeman,  says: 

"As  director  of  the  agricultural  experiment  station  and  a 
member  of  our  board  of  farmers'  institutes,  am  keenly  interested 


96  VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION. 

in  educational  efficiency  on  agricultural  and  industrial  lines.  I 
am  heartily  interested  in  the  Federal  appropriation  as  outlined 
in  the  Page  bill.  I  trust  the  friends  of  agricultural  education, 
who  all  agree  on  the  principles  at  the  foundation  of  these  bills, 
.will  work  out  a  plan  of  development  that  will  be  satisfactory 
and  beneficial  to  all  interested." 

The  editor  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  Husbandman,  Great  Falls,  says : 
"  We  heartily  indorse  your  bill.    Hope  it  may  pass." 

C.  A.  Duniway,  president  University  of  Montana,  Missoula: 

"  I  am  much  interested  in  your  inquiry  concerning  Senate  bill 
No.  3,  known  as  the  Page  bill.  The  passage  of  some  measure  of 
this  character  would  greatly  advance  the  public  welfare.  I  have 
no  suggestion  to  make  concerning  the  details  of  your  bill.  Its 
passage  in  its  present  form  would  seem  to  me  to  be  desirable." 

NEBRASKA. 

James  E.  Delzell,  State  superintendent  of  public  instruction  of 
Nebraska,  Lincoln: 

"  I  am  very  much  pleased  with  the  Page  vocational  education 
bill.  I  will  be  glad  to  assist  in  every  way  possible  to  advance 
this  bill." 

J.   W.   Crabtree,   formerly    State   superintendent,   department   of 
public  instruction,  Lincoln,  says: 

"  Permit  me  to  thank  you  for  sending  me  a  copy  of  the  bill 
which  you  introduced  offering  encouragement  to  the  teaching  of 
agriculture  in  the  public  schools,  normal  schools,  and  colleges  of 
the  country.  I  sincerely  hope  you  may  be  able  to  secure  the 
passage  of  this  bill.  If  its  provisions  are  carried  out,  this  infor- 
mation and  instruction  in  agriculture  and  home  economics  will 
be  brought  right  down  to  the  homes  of  the  people.  It  seems  to 
me  that  this  is  the  important  step  to  be  taken  at  this  time.  I 
shall  watch  with  interest  the  progress  of  this  bill  and  use  my 
influence  wherever  possible  in  its  behalf." 

Editor  Hatch,  of  the  Nebraska  Farm  Journal,  writes : 

"  There  is  no  man  of  average  information  and  intelligence  but 
who  knows  that  this  country  is  letting  the  brains  of  the  Nation 

fo  to  waste  because  no  adequate  vocational  training  is  provided 
c>r  the  large  middle  class  of  America.     Your  bill  seems  to  pro- 
vide the  only  practical  way  to  quicken,  increase,  and  develop 
the  average  American  deficiency.     We  hope  your  measure  will 
pass." 

E.  C.  Bishop,  former  State  superintendent  of  public  instruction, 
State  of  Nebraska,  says: 

"A  copy  of  the  bill,  S.  3,  which  you  kindly  inclosed,  meets  my 
approval,  and  I  am  glad  to  do  what  I  can  to  encourage  its 
passage." 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  97 

NEVADA. 

John  Edwards  Bray,  superintendent  of  public  instruction,  Carson, 
says: 

"  I  heartily  approve  Page  bill  for  encouraging  instruction  in 
agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  and  home  economics  in 
secondary  schools.  If  the  secondary  schools  are  to  get  into 
touch  with  the  industrial  progress  of  the  age,  all  these  things 
must  be  made  features  of  practical  instruction.  National  aid  is 
needed,  and  it  will  be  worth  more  than  a  thousand  battleships." 

The  several  district  educational  institutes  of  Nevada  have  re- 
cently held  meetings  at  Elkp,  Tonopah,  and  Las  Vegas.  At  every 
one  of  those  institutes  this  bill  was  one  of  the  important  subjects  of 
discussion,  and  at  each  meeting  the  bill  was  very  strongly  indorsed. 

At  the  Elko  Institute  the  following  resolution  was  adopted: 

"  Resolved,  That  we  approve  the  Page  bill  now  pending  in  the 
United  States  Senate  providing  for  national  aid  in  the  various 
States  for  agricultural  and  industrial  training  in  the  high 
schools  as  a  measure  of  enlightened  statesmanship.  The  bill 
proposes  to  place  yearly  at  the  disposal  of  the  States  several 
millions  of  dollars,  the  first  use  of  the  money  to  be  for  the  prepa- 
ration of  teachers  for  this  work." 

At  Tonopah  Institute  the  following  resolution  was  adopted : 

"  Whereas  there  is  pending  in  the  United  States  Senate  a 
measure  known  as  the  Page  bill,  which  has  for  its  object  the  ap- 
propriation of  national  funds  to  aid  and  encourage  agricultural 
and  industrial  training  in  the  secondary  (high)  schools  of  all  the 
States;  and 

"  Whereas .  such  expenditure  would  be  of  vastly  more  benefit 
to  our  country  than  the  millions  now  annually  spent  in  building 
battleships  for  the  destruction  of  human  life  or  for  useless  dis- 
play :  Therefore  be  it 

"  Resolved,  That  we  strongly  favor  the  Page  bill  and  earnestly 
request  Senators  Newlands  and  Nixon  and  Representative 
Roberts  to  give  it  their  support." 

At  the  Las  Vegas  Institute  the  following  resolution  was  adopted : 

"  Be  it  resolved,  That  we  favor  the  introduction  of  the  elements 
of  agriculture  and  industrial  training  in  the  school  curriculum. 
We  commend  the  Page  bill  now  pending  in  the  United  States 
Senate.  It  proposes  to  appropriate  national  funds  for  agricul- 
tural and  industrial  education  in  the  various  States,  first  for  the 
training  of  teachers,  and  then  for  the  maintenance  of  such  in- 
struction in  all  secondary  schools." 

NEW   HAMPSHIRE. 

J.  C.  Kendall,  director  New  Hampshire  Agricultural  Experiment 
Station,  New  Hampshire  College,  Durham,  says: 

"  I  am  in  hearty  sympathy  with  the  work  which  the  Southern 
Commercial  Congress  has  undertaken  in  pushing  the  Page  bill, 

49159— S.  Doc.  845,  62-2 7 


98  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

and  I  would  like  very  much  to  be  present  at  the  conference 
which  is  to  be  held  in  Washington  December  14,  15,  and  16,  but 
I  am  afraid  that  it  will  not  be  possible  for  me  to  be  away  at  that 
time. 

"A  large  problem  before  the  people  of  the  United  States  to-day 
is  putting  within  the  reach  of  all  the  opportunity  for  education 
along  the  lines  of  their  everj^-day  life.  We  must  change  our 
school  system  in  such  a  way  that  they  will  recognize  the  fact 
that  when  properly  treated  and  when  suitable  instructors  are 
provided  there  will  be  just  as  good  training  in  the  study  of  farm 
problems  as  in  reading  Greek. 

"  I  wish  for  you  and  your  associates  and  the  organization  that 
you  represent  success  in  the  passage  of  this  bill,  which  will  mean 
so  much  to  the  future  industrial  development  and  prosperity  of 
the  country." 

Ernest  L.  Silver,  principal  State  Normal  School,  Plymouth: 

"  It  seems  to  me  that  this  bill  is  particularly  sane  and  sound 
and  that  its  enactment  into  law  would  be  an  immense  benefit  to 
our  country.  I  believe  that  any  abridgment  or  substitution 
would  be  inimical  to  the  cause  of  popular  education  and  the 
progress  of  American  civic  and  industrial  life.  I  assure  you 
that  this  is  not  my  opinion  alone,  but  the  opinion  of  all  the 
educational  men  of  New  Hampshire." 

NEW  JERSEY. 

Franklin  Dye,  secretary  of  the  State  board  of  agriculture,  Trenton, 
writes : 

"  Believing  your  work  to  be  in  the  right  direction,  I  can  but 
wish  you  good  success." 

E.  E.  Johnstone,  superintendent  of  the  training  school  at  Vineland, 
writes : 

"  I  have  received  your  letter  of  December  1  and  a  copy  of 
Senate  bill  3,  introduced  April  6.  May  I  express  my  hearty 
approval  of  its  provisions  ?  " 

K.  C.  Davis,  principal  college  of  agriculture,  Rutgers  College  and 
Scientific  School,  New  Brunswick: 

"  I  think  your  bill  is  the  best  one  now  before  Congress  look- 
ing toward  the  extension  of  agricultural  education,  and  I  hope 
it  will  pass." 

Emily  S.  Hamblen,  secretary  of  the  Public  Welfare  Committee  of 
Essex  County,  N.  J.: 

"  No  educational  measure  could  meet  with  heartier  approval 
from  me  than  does  this  bill,  and  I  am  confident  that  I  am  speak- 
ing unofficially  for  our  society,  for  I  know  that  both  collectively 
and  individually  we  stand  for  such  solutions  of  our  social  and 
economic  problems. 

"  I  believe  that  such  constructive  work,  beginning  at  the 
foundation  in  educational  methods,  as  will  fit  the  individual 


VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION.  99 

both  to  adapt  himself  to  varying  conditions  and  to  develop  the 
natural  resources  of  our  country  is  worth  all  the  political  recon- 
struction ever  proposed  or  dreamed  of." 

Dr.  Byron  D.  Halstead,  director  New  Jersey  Agricultural  College 
Experiment  Station,  New  Brunswick: 

"  Your  kind  favor  of  the  20th  instant  is  received.  I  have  read 
your  bill  No.  3  and  the  report  upon  the  same;  and  it  gives  me 
much  pleasure  to  reply,  as  you  suggest,  and  as  follows :  The  in- 
tents of  the  bill  are  most  excellent,  and  I  trust  that  it  will  be  en- 
acted. This  is  a  natural  sequence  of  the  land-grant  act  of  1862 
and  the  Hatch  and  Adams  Acts  of  more  recent  date,  for  they 
have  provided  a  proper  foundation  for  a  popular  vocational 
education  that  is  designed  to  reach  all  the  industrial  classes. 
The  passage  of  this  bill  will  help  to  bring  tttle  United  States  to 
an  educational  plane  that  will  command  the  admiration  of  all 
those  nations  now  far  ahead  of  us  in  the  prime  essentials  of  pro- 
gressive citizenship." 

W.  S.  Willis,  principal  Normal  and  Training  School,  Newark: 

"  Vocational  training  will  occupy  a  large  place  in  our  educa- 
tional system,  and,  if  the  best  results  are  to  be  obtained,  special 
preparation  for  this  should  be  given  for  this  work.  I  trust  the 
appropriations,  as  suggested  in  your  bill,  will  prevail." 

NEW  MEXICO. 

Hon.  W.  C.  McDonald,  Governor  of  New  Mexico,  Santa  Fe : 

"  I  am  just  in  receipt  of  your  letter  of  the  14th  instant  inclos- 
ing copy  of  the  report  on  your  vocational-education  bill.  I  can 
say  without  hesitation  that  I  am  in  thorough  sympathy  with 
such  a  measure,  and  will  give  it  my  unqualified  support.  Our 
first  State  legislature  will  convene  on  March  11.  There  will 
then  be  chosen  two  Senators  to  represent  New  Mexico  at  the 
National  Congress,  and  I  am  quite  sure  they  will  help  along  with 
your  industrial-education  bill." 

Frank  H.  H.  Roberts,  president  New  Mexico  State  Normal  Univer- 
sity, Las  Vegas : 

"At  a  recent  meeting  of  the  board  of  education  of  the  State  of 
New  Mexico  Senate  bill  No.  3,  known  as  the  Page  bill,  was  in- 
dorsed, and  your  honorable  body  is  petitioned  to  pass  the  same." 

E.  A.  Drake,  president  New  Mexico  State  School  of  Mines,  Socorro : 

"  In  reply  to  your  esteemed  favor  of  February  22,  I  beg  leave 
to  say  that  I  am  heartily  in  favor  of  the  Page  bill,  or  any  other 
bill  for  the  encouragement  of  vocational  education." 

C.  M.  Light,  principal  Normal  School  of  New  Mexico,  Silver  City : 

"  I  am  in  receipt  of  Senate  bill  No.  3  in  reference  to  voca- 
tional education.  I  heartily  approve  of  the  plan  of  the  bill, 


100  VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION". 

especially  that  feature  of  it  referring  to  instruction  in  vocational 
training  through  the  normal  schools.  This  matter  appeals  very 
forcibly  to  the  Spanish- American  people  throughout  the  State. 
If  there  is  any  people  who  need  vocational  training  it  is  the 
Spanish- American.  He  seems  fit  foe  nothing  but  positions  of 
drudgery;  his  knowledge  of  agriculture  and  the  trades  is  very 
crude.  The  system  of  training  according  to  the  plan  in  this  bill 
is  the  very  thing  which,  it  seems  to  me,  he  needs.  Any  aid  which 
we  can  give  you  in  the  passage  of  the  measure  will  be  cheerfully 
given." 

William  H.  Andrews,  Territorial  Delegate  from  New  Mexico,  says : 

"  I  thoroughly  believe  in  this  bill,  which  I  have  read  care- 
fully." 

B.  S.  Go  wen,  New  Mexico  Normal  University,  says : 

"  I  am  interested  in  the  bill  whose  purpose  it  is  to  encourage 
instruction  in  agriculture,  the  trades,  and  home  economics.  Such 
work  as  this  is  of  unusual  importance  in  New  Mexico,  where  we 
have  so  large  a  population  that  it  must  necessarily  depend  on 
other  lines  besides  those  in  which  scholarship  of  the  ordinary 
kind  plays  the  chief  part." 

Prof.  Luther  Foster,  dean  and  director  division  of  agriculture,  New 
Mexico  College  of  Agriculture  and  Mechanic  Arts,  Agricultural  Col- 
lege, New  Mexico : 

"  I  am  pleased  to  acknowledge  yours  inclosing  a  copy  of  the 
Page  bill  and  also  report  of  subcommittee  on  the  same.  All 
things  considered,  I  believe  it  the  most  satisfactory  bill  for  all 
interests  concerned  that  has  been  presented,  and  I  would  be  very 
glad  to  see  it  become  a  law." 

NEW  YORK. 

Dr.  J.  G.  Schurman,  president  of  Cornell  University,  says : 

"  I  am  greatly  interested  in  the  subject,  as  I  feel  very  deeply  the 
need  of  making  better  provisions  than  we  now  have  for  encour- 
aging instruction  in  agriculture,  the  trades  and  industries,  and 
home  economics  in  institutions  of  instruction  readily  accessible 
to  the  mass  of  our  people." 

Chancellor  James  R.  Day,  of  Syracuse  University,  says : 

"  It  is  not  enough  to  educate  a  few  specialists  for  management 
of  large  estates  or  the  farms  of  fancy  farmers.  Farm  education 
should  be  as  extensive  as  farming.  It  should  be  within  reach  of 
all  parts  of  the  State  as  plain,  practical  courses  of  study,  illus- 
trated by  object  lessons  of  farms  and  grounds  and  by  animals, 
plants,  fruits,  insects  friendly  and  destructive,  birds  beneficial 
and  harmful,  and  in  practical  farm  industries  and  in  higher 
courses  in  chemistry,  bacteriology,  soil  analysis,  and  animal  and 
plant  breeding,  farm  economics,  farm  architecture,  and  engineer- 
ing. In  short,  the  farmers  should  be  prepared  for  their  high 
calling,  as  are  the  doctors,  lawyers,  and  teachers.  The  time 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  101 

must  come,  is  inevitable,  when  the  farmer  ignorant  of  his  calling 
and  conditions  will  be  as  unusual  and  impossible  as  an  ignorant 
doctor  or  lawyer  at  his  practice." 

Eli  W.  Weaver,  chairman  of  students'  aid  committee  of  the  High 
School  Teachers'  Association,  New  York  City,  says: 

"There  are  in  New  York  City  to-day  thousands  of  young 
people  who  have  been  trained  to  high  ideals  in  the  homes  of 
self-sacrificing  parents,  who  have  deserved  and  received  con- 
siderate treatment  in  the  schools  and  who  have  enjoyed  the 
respect  and  esteem  of  their  associates,  who  have  afterwards  gone 
out  to  earn  their  own  living  in  those  occupations  usually  open 
to  young  people;  but  too  frequently  these  young  people  have 
been  compelled  to  wander  around  for  days  in  an  aimless  search 
for  employment;  they  have  been  persuaded  to  accept  places  at 
pitiful  wages,  with  promises  of  advancement,  in  which  they 
have  afterwards  learned  that  there  were  never  any  prospects  of 
advancement;  they  have  outgrown  places  in  which  there  was 
no  special  skill  or  knowledge  to  be  acquired,  from  which  they 
were  turned  out  without  faith  either  in  themselves  or  their 
fellow  men  or  a  belief  in  the  existence  of  a  sense  of  fairness  or 
justice  in  society.  However  well  equipped  the  barks  in  which 
the  youthful  sailors  launch  out  on  the  troublesome  seas  of  com- 
mercial and  industrial  life  may  be,  the  chances  are  against  them 
unless  they  are  provided  with  sailing  directions.  Since  society 
must  in  some  way  or  other  care  for  the  disheartened,  the  broken- 
spirited,  and  the  ruined,  it  might  be  well  for  society  to  provide 
the  sailing  directions." 

Mr.  Dean,  chief  of  the  division  of  trade  schools,  New  York,  says: 

"  The  school  of  yesterday  trained  its  youth  for  a  job,  while 
the  school  of  to-morrow  will  train  its  youth  for  a  vocation.  It 
provides  for  every  vocation  for  which  there  is  reasonable  demand, 
and  in  that  school  the  boy  must  remain  until  there  is  ground 
for  believing  that  he  has  found  a  calling  for  which  nature  and 
his  own  effort  has  prepared  him. 

"My  father  sent  me  to  a  school  of  yesterday  so  much  that  I 
very  nearly  missed  an  education. 

"The  school  of  to-morrow  will  have  over  its  door,  'We  con- 
serve the  whole  boy.' " 

Francis  J.  Cheney,  principal  State  normal  and  training  school, 
Cortland,  says: 

"  I  regret  exceedingly  that  I  shall  not  be  able  to  be  present  at 
the  conference  of  the  friends  of  the  Page  bill  (Senate  bill  3)  on 
December  14,  15,  and  16  on  account  of  duties  in  connection  with 
my  work  as  principal  of  the  State  normal  school.  I  am  very 

freatly  interested  in  this  bill  and  believe  that  its  passage  will  be 
or  the  best  interests  of  the  young  people  whom  we  are  training 
for  citizenship.  Certainly  the  idea  embodied  in  the  bill  is  tak- 
ing a  great  hold  on  the  country.  The  Page  bill  is  an  effort  in 
the  right  direction  to  the  better  fitting  of  our  young  people  for 
useful  and  successful  lives." 


102  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION-. 

Benjamin  R.  Andrews,  secretary-treasurer  of  the  Teachers'  College, 
New  York  City,  says : 

"  I  am  glad  to  know  that  your  bill  for  Federal  aid  to  education 
is  securing  increasing  support.  I  judge  from  the  talk  of  econ- 
omy that  it  may  be  impossible  to  secure  enactment  at  this  session, 
but  I  hope  that  you  can  get  favorable  action  in  the  Senate.  It 
will  be  a  great  step  forward." 

The  Knickerbocker  Press,  Albany,  says : 

"  The  Page  bill  seems  admirably  suited  to  promote  the  ends 
desired,  and  its  advocates  should  receive  the  fullest  cooperation 
from  the  representatives  of  the  Empire  State." 

The  National  Provisioner,  New  York,  says: 

"The  bill  of  Senator  Page  deserves  really  active,  not  merely 
perfunctory,  support. 

"  Educators  of  national  reputation  are  giving  their  support  to 
the  bill,  and  it  should  pass;  but,  like  all  measures  proposed  in 
Congress,  merit  alone  will  not  be  sufficient  to  secure  its  enact- 
ment. Public  sentiment  must  be  aroused  and  its  virtues  made 
known. 

"  This  seems  to  be  a  sensible,  systematic  way  of  increasing 
knowledge  of  how  to  expand  our  supply  of  live  stock  and  other 
agricultural  products,  as  well  as  to  educate  the  future  genera- 
tiojis  in  other  useful  directions." 

C.  W.  Burkett,  editor  of  the  American  Agriculturist,  New  York, 
says: 

"  I  am  very  much  interested  in  your  bill,  which  proposes  that 
the  National  Government  shall  cooperate  with  the  States  in 
encouraging  instruction  in  agriculture,  the  trades,  industries, 
and  home  economics  in  secondary  schools  and  in  preparing  teach- 
ers for  these  vocational  subjects.  I  do  not  hesitate  to  say  thai 
this  measure,  if  enacted  into  law,  will  be  of  the  utmost  benefit, 
not  only  to  agriculture,  but  to  the  entire  country. 

"  I  have  made  a  very  careful  examination  of  the  bill  and  have 
studied  the  needs  of  the  schools  for  a  great  many  years,  and  I  am 
confident  that  this  measure  is  one  of  the  most  needful  now  before 
Congress,  and  that  I  am  expressing  the  opinion  of  tens  and 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  farmers  and  industrial  people  when  I 
urge  the  passage  of  this  measure. 

"  The  American  Agriculturist  weeklies  are  with  you  heart  and 
soul  in  this  matter.  In  the  past  we  have  given  page  after  page 
to  the  effort  to  secure  a  better  system  of  education  along  agricul- 
tural and  industrial  lines.  Just  recently  I  have  had  an  editorial 
telling  about  the  Page  bill  and  what  it  seeks  to  do.  We  shall 
keep  right  at  this  matter,  hoping  that  in  the  end  the  idea  will 
win." 

The  Business  Men's  Association  of  Newburgh  gives  expression  to 
a  most  important  thought  in  this  language: 

"  The  lack  of  knowledge  of  how  to  till  the  soil  is  the  great 
economic  evil  of  our  country,  and  it  can  easily  be  corrected  by 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  103 

teaching  the  rising  generation  the  art  of  agriculture.  No  nation 
can  be  truly  great  that  is  not  firmly  established  on  a  sound  agri- 
cultural basis. 

"  Everyone  takes  a  great  interest  and  pleasure  in  his  work, 
no  matter  what  it  is,  if  he  can  do  it  well,  and  his  joy  is  in  his 
work  in  proportion  to  his  skill. 

"  The  dissatisfied  workers  resort  to  strikes  and  employers  to 
lockouts,  creating  enmity  where  there  should  be  friendship  and 
cooperation. 
******* 

"Are  we  leading  the  world,  as  we  should  do,  in  solving  this 
problem  ?  Are  we  even  abreast  of  other  nations  in  this  respect  ? 
No;  by  no  means.  We  are  perhaps  third  or  fourth  to  Ger- 
many, Switzerland,  Denmark,  and  probably  Sweden.  What 
are  they  doing  that  is  better  than  our  methods?  They  are  first 
developing  children  physically  and  training  their  hands  as 
much  as  the  brains  and  giving  each  a  trade.  Rich  and  poor 
alike  must  learn  a  trade,  even  to  the  sons  of  the  Emperor  of 
Germany.  They  have  then  an  appreciation  of  the  dignity  of 
labor  instead  of  despising  it,  as  we  do. 

"  We  have  great  conventions  of  governors  in  Washington  to 
beg  for  a  conservation  of  the  resources  of  our  country,  when  our 
Nation's  greatest  resources,  the  lives  and  health  of  our  children, 
are  being  squandered  in  nearly  every  school  in  the  country." 

The  Engineering  News,  New  York  City,  says : 

"  I  heartily  agree  with  you  that  the  greatest  need  of  the  country 
to-day  is  to  better  the  instruction  in  our  common  schools  and 
secondary  schools,  so  as  to  better  fit  the  students  therein  for  the 
real  work  of  life." 

The  Commercial,  Buffalo,  says: 

"  There  is  little  doubt  that  eventually  some  system  similar  to 
that  proposed  by  Senator  Page  will  become  effective.  More  and 
more  the  attention  of  the  country  is  being  turned  to  the  necessity 
of  better  facilities  for  industrial  and  agricultural  education  for 
the  young  of  the  .rural  sections,  and  the  present  bill,  while  it  may 
have  its  defects,  is  sure  to  have  its  influence  in  securing  legisla- 
tion along  the  lines  suggested. 

"  It  is  a  remarkable  coincidence  that  another  Vermont  man, 
Senator  Merrill,  was  the  father  of  the  bill  which  established  the 
State  colleges  of  agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts." 

The  editor  of  the  Financial  World,  New  York,  says : 

"  We  quite  approve  of  any  efforts  made  that  will  lead  to  an 
increased  efficiency  of  our  men  of  to-morro\v." 

L.  P.  Alford,  editor  of  the  American  Machinist,  New  York  City, 
says: 

"  Your  letter  of  July  17,  with  its  inclosure,  a  copy  of  Senate 
bill  3,  is  before  me.  I  have  read  both  with  a  great  deal  of  in- 
terest. For  some  four  years  I  have  been  studying  the  problem  of 


104  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

industrial  education,  and  a  great  deal  of  space  has  been  devoted 
to  it  in  our  journal. 

"As  a  simple  act  of  justice  it  seems  to  me  that  our  Federal 
Government  should  appropriate  funds  for  the  furthering  of  the 
education  of  industrial  workers  in  'the  same  way  that  it  fosters 
the  spread  of  agricultural  knowledge. 

"  I  most  heartily  agree  with  the  sentiment  expressed  in  your 
letter  to  the  effect  that  we  must  do  something  for  the  boys  and 
girls  of  the  great  middle  classes  in  order  to  really  fit  them  for 
earning  a  livelihood.  We  are  far  behind  Germany  and  Switzer- 
land in  this  particular.  Something  must  be  done  at  once  to  aid 
in  transforming  the  green  boy  of  the  country  and  the  untrained 
lad  of  the  city  into  men  trained  and  educated  in  some  trade  or 
vocation  from  which  they  can  earn  a  comfortable  living,  and  by 
the  exercise  of  which  they  will  be  valuable  units  in  our  industrial 
life.  I  shall  watch  the  course  of  this  bill  with  a  great  deal  of 
interest.  The  purpose  of  this  bill  is  worthy,  and  I  shall  support 
it  as  far  as  it  is  proper  for  me  to  do  in  the  columns  of  my 
journal." 

Fred  W.  Atkinson,  president  the  Polytechnic  Institute,  Brooklyn : 

"  I  am  in  heartiest  sympathy  with  your  bill,  and  a  rather  care- 
ful reading  of  it  suggests  no  important  changes.  You  certainly 
are  on  the  right  track." 

Charles  H.  Levermore,  president  Adelphi  College,  Brooklyn : 

"  Of  course  you  are  on  the  right  track.  I  sincerely  hope  that 
Senate  bill  No.  3  will  become  a  law." 

Prof,  Mary  Schenck  Woolman,  teachers'  college,  Columbia  Uni- 
versity, New  York  City: 

"  The  proposed  bill  is  as  important  to  the  woman  of  the  United 
States  and  to  the  homes  as  to  the  industries.  Women  are  going 
untrained  into  the  industries  and  are  in  grave  danger  to  their 
health  and  to  their  morals.  The  passage  of  this  bill  will  provide 
a  preparation  which  will  give  girls  a  training  which  will  be  of 
equal  value  in  the  homes  as  well  as  for  wage  earning  and  provide 
the  qualities  for  the  best  class  of  citizen.  In  providing  for  teach- 
ers' training  you  recognize  a  very  valuable  part  of  the  work.  The 
old  teacher  of  manual  training  is  helpless  in  this  new  field,  as  also 
the  academic  teacher.  They  dp  not  know  industry  nor  its 
sociological,  economic,  and  technical  needs.  They  fail  in  teach-, 
ing  and  inspiring  the  students  on  account  of  their  lack  of  op- 
portunity and  special  training." 

F.  L.  Holtz,  Brooklyn  Training  School  for  Teachers,  Brooklyn: 

"  I  have  read  the  bill  for  encouraging  instruction  in  industrial 
education,  and  am  in  favor  of  such  legislation." 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  105 

Miss  Mary  E.  Williams,  department  of  education  of  New  York 
City: 

"  Please  accept  my  thanks  for  the  copy  of  the  Senate  bill  No. 
3,  and  your  report  thereon.  It  is  intensely  interesting  to  me  and 
my  staff  of  170  teachers,  and  you  have  our  most  earnest  wish 
and  every  good  word  that  we  may  be  able  to  say  of  the  passage 
of  a  bill  so  important  to  the  Nation. 

"  In  New  York  City  we  are  teaching  home  economics  for  the 
last  10  years  in  the  secondary  schools,  as  you  will  see  by  the 
course  of  study  inclosed.  For  some  years  we  have  been  able  to 
extend  the  work  to  girls  over  age  in  the  grades  below  7  A,  but 
we  were  obliged  to  drop  all  these  special  classes  this  year  be- 
cause of  shortage  of  funds.  On  this  account  hundreds  of  girls 
will  go  to  the  different  trades  and  vocations  without  any  in- 
struction in  the  highest  of  all  vocations — that  of  home  making." 

L.  Eay  Balderston,  teachers'  college,  Columbia  University,  New 
York  City: 

"  I  am  in  hearty  sympathy  with  the  work  as  being  pushed  by 
the  Page  bill.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  it  passes  and  brings  all  the 
good  bound  to  follow." 

Prof.  Arthur  W.  Gilbert,  college  of  agriculture,  Cornell  Univer- 
sity, Ithaca : 

"  I  am  very  pleased  to  indorse  your  bill  on  vocational  educa- 
tion, Senate  bill  No.  3.  I  am  strongly  convinced  that  the  passage 
of  this  bill  will  enormously  benefit  the  people  of  the  United 
States. 

"  Such  a  measure  will  greatly  stimulate  instruction  in  agricul- 
ture, the  trades  and  industries,  and  home  economics  in  agricul- 
tural schools." 

E.  J.    Goodwin,    principal   of   the   Packer    Collegiate   Institute, 
Brooklyn : 

"  I  write  to  indorse  heartily  Senate  bill  No.  3,  designed  to 
encourage  vocational  education  along  the  lines  of  the  trades 
and  industries,  agriculture,  and  home  economics.  I  am  sure  that 
this  bill,  if  enacted  into  law,  would  open  a  much  needed  new 
era  for  the  industrial  training  of  our  boys  and  girls." 

F.  J.  Trinder,  superintendent  of  apprentices,  General  Electric  Co., 
Schenectady : 

"  Senate  bill  3  to  provide  for  the  industrial  training  of  boys 
and  girls  as  introduced  by  you  deserves  to  meet  with  the  hearty 
support  of  your  colleagues,  also  of  the  parents,  the  citizens,  and 
the  voters  of  the  country. 

"  We  are  very  much  interested  in  any  of  the  vocational  school 
work,  no  matter  by  what  name  it  is  known,  either  as  trade  school 
or  part-time  school,  so  long  as  it  is  planned  and  conducted  in 
a  way  that  shows  that  real  intensified  work  is  accomplished. 

"  If  our  State  educational  bureau  would  wake  up  and  do 
something  in  this  line  really  worth  while  our  boys  would  be 


106  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

raised  in  a  few  years  above  the  standard  of  pool-room  attend- 
ants, street  loafers,  and  would  not  be  applicants  for  the  county 
house  at  the  age  of  50,  when  too  old  to  perform  the  duties  of  a 
laborer  or  street  sweeper."  , 

William  Church  Osborne,  president  Children's  Aid  Society,  New 
York  City: 

"  With  reference  to  your  bill  (S.  3)  for  Federal  aid  to  agricul- 
tural and  industrial  education,  I  heartily  approve  of  your  prop- 
osition if  carried  out  in  the  amended  form." 

Miss  Helen  Kinne,  professor  of  household  arts  education,  Colum- 
bia University,  New  York  City: 

"  I  hope  that  my  delay  does  not  make  my  letter  useless.  I  cer- 
tainly approve  the  bill  and  will  do  whatever  is  in  my  power  to 
forward  it.  I  am  telling  the  students  in  this  department  about 
the  purport  of  the  bill,  and  as  they  go  to  their  homes  they  will, 
of  course,  spread  the  knowledge  of  it.  While  that  may  not  have 
a  direct  and  immediate  result  it  certainly  should  help  in  the 
future." 

NORTH   CAROLINA. 

Hon.  William  W.  Kitchin,  governor  of  North  Carolina,  says : 

"  In  reply  to  your  letter  of  the  llth,  I  favor  the  extension  of 
agricultural,  mechanical,  and  industrial  education,  and  favor  the 
general  purposes  of  the  bill  which  you  inclosed." 

D.  H.  Hill,  president  College  of  Agriculture  and  Mechanic  Arts, 
Raleigh,  says: 

"  I  have  gone  over  the  bill,  which  you  were  kind  enough  to  send 
me,  with  a  great  deal  of  care.  The  general  features  of  the  bill 
commend  themselves  very  strongly  to  my  judgment.  The  Nation 
certainly  needs  training  along  the  lines  suggested  in  the  measures 
embodied  in  this  bill,  and  I  hope  that  the  general  plan  may  be 
carried  out." 

C.  N.  Evans,  of  the  board  of  governors  of  the  Southern  Commercial 
Congress,  Wilmington,  says: 

"  Regret  I  can  not  appear  before  you  in  warm  support  of  the 
Page  bill.  In  the  interest  of  a  broader  national  view  and  of  our 
children  especially,  I  urge  the  adoption  of  the  Page  bill  and  trust 
its  provisions  may  meet  the  approval  of  your  committee." 

J.  Y.  Joyner,  superintendent  of  public  instruction  of  North  Caro- 
lina, says : 

"  I  heartily  favor  the  passage  of  the  bill. 

"About  82  per  cent  of  the  people  in  the  Southern  States  are 
engaged  in  agricultural  pursuits.  No  adequate  provision  has 
been  made  by  any  State  for  the  proper  education  and  training  of 
children  for  the  pursuits  that  the  large  majority  of  our  people 
are  now  following  for  a  living. 

"  The  bill  proposes  to  stimulate  and  help  the  States  to  help 
themselves  without  being  paternalistic,  without  interfering  with 
the  autonomy  of  the  State  systems  of  education,  or  without  any 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  107 

undue  interference  in  any  way  by  Federal  authority  with  State 
authority." 

The  editor  of  the  Progressive  Farmer  Gazette,  Raleigh,  says: 

"  We  shall  be  only  too  glad  to  do  all  in  our  power  to  help  carry 
out  your  ideas.  The  measure  meets  with  our  hearty  approval." 

William  C.  A.   Hammel,  State  Normal   and  Industrial  College, 
Greensboro : 

"  I  certainly  wish  to  indorse  your  bill  on  vocational  training 
and  will  lend  all  aid  to  help  you  in  any  way  possible. 

"  Having  taught  manual  arts  for  20  years  and  working  with 
the  teachers  of  the  whole  South  in  my  summer-school  work,  I  feel 
that  the  bill  introduced  by  you  will  help  along  the  94  per  cent  of 
the  boys  and  girls  who  never  reach  the  high  school. 

"  If  I  can  be  of  any  service  to  you  in  your  cause,  please  do  not 
hesitate  to  write  me.  I  stand  ready  to  help." 

W.    A.    Withers,    North    Carolina    College    of    Agriculture    and 
Mechanic  Arts,  West  Raleigh : 

"  I  have  read  over  the  bill  carefully  and  am  satisfied  that  its 
passage  will  result  in  a  great  advancement  of  the  agricultural 
interests  of  the  Union.  As  the  progress  of  our  whole  country 
depends  to  a  large  extent  upon  our  rural  population,  you  will  be 
serving  the  entire  people  in  securing  the  passage  of  this  bill.  If 
I  am  able  to  assist  you  in  any  way  it  will  give  me  great  pleasure 
to  do  so." 

NORTH   DAKOTA. 

George  A.   McFarland,   president   State   Normal   School,  Valley 
City: 

"  I  know  of  nothing  that  would  be  so  influential  in  bringing 
our  educational  practice  up  to  the  practical  demands  of  the  times 
as  the  passage  of  the  Page  Senate  bill.  Our  high  schools,  normal 
schools,  and  colleges  need  the  stimulation  this  bill  will  give 
them.  *  *  * 

"As  an  agricultural  State,  I  am  satisfied  that  the  entire  State 
is  much  interested  in  the  passage  of  this  bill.  Vocational  educa- 
tion has  a  great  hold  upon  the  minds  of 'our  people.  They  would 
be  unwilling  to  accept  the  argument  that  there  is  no  money  for 
such  an  appropriation  when  the  Government  is  considering  the 
building  of  battleships  that  will  cost  nearly  twice  as  much  as 
the  annual  appropriation  for  vocational  education. 

"  You  may  count  on  me  for  any  assistance  that  I  can  possibly 
render  in  your  efforts  to  get  this  bill  through  Congress." 

E.  L.  Ladd,  dean  department  of  chemistry,  North  Dakota  Agri- 
cultural College,  Agricultural  College: 

"  Senate  bill  No.  3,  to  promote  vocational  education,  is  a  meas- 
ure that  should  receive  the  support  of  every  right-thinking  man 
who  is  anxious  for  the  promotion  of  education  for  all  the  people. 
With  the  support  as  proposed  in  this  bill  for  the  furthering  of 
industrial  education,  great  good  will  come  to  the  industrial 


108  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

classes  of  the  United  States ;  and  the  development  of  agriculture 
and  the  industries  will  be  assured  along  lines  that  will  make  for 
the  best  interests  of  the  country  at  large. 

"I  am,  therefore,  heartily  in  sympathy  with  the  measure  and 
trust  that  it  may  become  a  law." 

J.  W.  Preston,  president  normal  school  at  Madison,  says: 

"Our  State  teachers'  association  last  week  indorsed  Senate 
bill  3  and  urged  our  congressional  delegation  to  support  same. 
Educational  sentiment  in  this  State  strongly  favors  the  bill." 

Hon.  L.  B.  Hanna,  M.  C.,  says : 

"  I  am  in  receipt  of  your  letter  of  9th  instant.  It  goes  without 
saying,  Senator,  that  I  will  do  everything  I  possibly  can  to  help 
you  to  push  this  matter  along.  I  believe  the  bill  is  right." 

H.  L.  Bolley,  dean  department  of  biology,  North  Dakota  Agri- 
cultural College,  Agricultural  College: 

"  I  have  your  letter  of  February  20,  inclosing  Senate  bill 
No.  3,  a  bill  to  cooperate  with  the  States  in  encouraging  instruc- 
tion in  agriculture,  etc.  I  am  not  an  expert  on  the  technicalities 
of  law,  but  reading  the  purpose  and  intent  of  the  bill,  I  am  con- 
vinced that  it  should  prove  a  great  boon  to  this  country.  Just 
in  proportion  as  our  people  are  enlightened  as  to  agriculture  and 
enlightened  in  the  trades  and  industries  of  life  will  this  country 
prosper.  I  believe  that  the  bill  is  well  worded  to  give  a  proper 
stimulus  along  lines  in  which  much  aid  is  needed." 

OHIO. 

H.  C.  Minnick,  dean  Ohio  State  Normal  College,  Oxford : 

"  Your  letter  of  recent  date  received,  also  a  copy  of  your  voca- 
tional bill  and  report  of  the  Subcommittee  on  Agriculture  and 
Forestry.  If  Congress  shall  make  such  provision  for  the  pro- 
motion of  industrial  and  vocational  education  as  is  described  in 
your  bill,  it  will  make  the  greatest  contribution  toward  realiz- 
ing the  modern  aim  of  education  for  the  masses  that  has  ever 
been  made  in  this  country.  The  high  schools  as  they  are  now 
established  provide  training  almost  exclusively  for  those  who 
are  going  into  the  professions.  The  schools  are  organized  on 
that  basis,  and  it  is  almost  impossible  to  reconstruct  them.  The 
provisions  of  your  bill  will  make  it  possible  for  the  reorganiza- 
tion of  secondary  education  in  this  country  so  that  the  96  per  cent 
of  the  workers  will  receive  an  education  preparing  them  for  their 
work  as  well  as  the  4  per  cent  or  the  professional  class.  The 
bill  is  comprehensive  in  the  fact  that  it  makes  provision  for  the 
encouragement  of  the  industries,  provides  schools  in  which  the 
industries  may  be  taught  and  provides  for  the  preparation  of 
teachers  to  instruct  in  these  industrial  studies.  I  consider  it  a 
great  contribution  to  the  forward  movement  in  education." 

A.  B.  Church,  president  Buchtel  College,  Akron : 

"  In  my  judgment,  you  are  working  along  the  right  lines  for 
the  elevation  and  betterment  of  the  coming  generations.  The 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  109 

broad,  distinctive  characteristic  of  our  American  civilization  is 
its  broad,  democratic  system  of  public  education.  It  is  the  hope 
of  this  Republic  more  than  of  any  Republic  that  has  existed  or 
can  exist  as  a  transformation  of  a  monarchial  form  of  govern- 
ment. I  sincerely  hope  that  you  will  succeed  in  your  undertak- 
ing. I  congratulate  you  upon  the  step  you  have  taken,  and  offer 
you  my  cooperation." 

James  W.  McLane,  principal  normal  training  school,  Cleveland: 

"  Although  ours  is  a  city  normal  school,  and  not  included  in 
the  provisions  of  Senate  bill  3,  the  Page  bill,  I  wish  to  enroll  my 
name  on  the  list  of  those  who  favor  the  cause  of  vocational,  and 
especially  of  agricultural  education. 

"The  only  possible  explanation  of  our  slowness  in  reaching 
the  formulation  of  such  a  bill  as  yours,  is  that  we  have  not  really 
understood  the  full  import  of  the  word  ;  education.'  What  we 
call  '  education  '  has  been  too  far  away  from  what  we  call '  life  ' ; 
and  legislative  enactments  like  the  one  you  propose  will  go  far 
to  bridge  the  chasm  that  still  yawns  between  the  two. 

"  So  courage  to  your  soul,  and  wisdom  to  your  counsels.  We 
shall  eventually  value  properly  the  practical  in  education,  with- 
out the  least  danger  of  sacrificing  the  cultivative  in  the  inspira- 
tional." 

Lee    R.    Knight,    principal    Perkins    Normal    Training    School, 
Akron : 

"  Your  favor  of  February  29  and  the  report  on  vocational 
education  were  duly  received  and  read. 

"  I  am  thoroughly  in  sympathy  with  the  purposes  of  the  bill, 
and  I  am  unable  to  see  how  any  intelligent  citizen  can  hold  any 
other  attitude.  Education  of  the  people  presents  the  funda- 
mental problems  of  the  Nation.  And  this  is  no  mere  cant.  Edu- 
cation has  tended  to  become  limited  to  the  world  of  books,  to 
become  cultural  in  the  wrong  sense  of  not  being  useful  save  for 
ornament  to  the  superior  mind  supposed  to  possess  it. 

"  Poverty  oppresses  the  land,  but  it  is  a  poverty  of  potent 
ideas,  not  a  material  poverty.  There  are,  perhaps,  enough  ideas ; 
but  too  many  of  them  are  pale  and  attenuated  from  being  dis- 
sociated from  the  activities  of  life.  In  other  words,  poverty 
-  means  paucity  and  impotency  of  ideas ;  fewness  and  feebleness, 
not  as  applied  to  dollars,  but  as  applied  to  ideas.  Vocational 
education  should  strongly  tend  and  ultimately  result,  if  wisely 
conducted,  in  a  mighty  amelioration  of  conditions." 

A.  D.  Selby,  Ohio  Agricultural  Experiment  Station,  Wooster: 

"I  had  been  much  interested  in  the  discussions  on  the  Page 
bill  before  the  Association  of  Agricultural  Colleges  and  Experi- 
ment Stations  in  Columbus  in  November  last.  I  have  recently 
run  through  amended  bill  and  wish  to  express  my  heartiest 
approval  of  the  measure." 


110  VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION. 

Hon.  J.  J.  Whit  acre,  M.  C.,  Ohio,  says : 

"  I  beg  to  acknowledge  receipt  of  your  kind  invitation  asking 
me  to  take  part  in  the  conference  called  December  14-16  for  the 
discussion  of  the  Page  vocational-education  bill.  I  regret  to  say 
that  I  can  not  attend  because  of  meetings  of  the  House  Agricul- 
tural Committee,  but  I  hasten  to  assure  you  that  I  am  in  com- 
plete sympathy  with  the  objects  of  the  bill,  and  anything  I  can 
do  to  further  the  movement,  as  a  member  of  the  House  Agri- 
cultural Committee,  will  be  done  most  willingly  and  cheerfully." 

Henry  G.  Williams,  dean  of  the  State  Normal  College  of  Ohio  and 
member  of  the  national  committee  on  agricultural  education,  says: 

"  Your  notice  of  the  7th  concerning  the  meeting  of  the  Senate 
committee,  December  14,  15,  16,  at  hand.  I  would  like  very 
much  to  be  present  and  assist  in  presenting  the  matter  to  the 
committee.  It  may  be  possible  for  me  to  do  so.  If  I  am  not 
present  you  may  expect  a  night  letter.  I  am  very  much  inter- 
ested in  it,  and  have  done  as  much  perhaps  as  anyone  else  to 
further  the  campaign  on  behalf  of  Senate  bill  3." 

The  editor  of  the  Farm  and  Fireside,  of  Springfield,  writes : 

"  I  believe  that  the  future  of  agriculture  in  this  country  de- 
pends upon  a  basic  reform  in  rural  schools  in  the  direction  of 
the  correlation  of  the  rural  schools  with  rural  life.  I  am  there- 
fore intensely  interested  in  your  letter  and  in  the  bill  which 
accompanies  it,  and  promise  you  the  active  cooperation  of  Farm 
and  Fireside  in  so  far  as  our  space  will  permit.  Personally  I 
think  the  bill  would  accomplish  an  educational  revolution  of  the 
most  beneficent  sort." 

B.  M.  Davis,  president  of  the  agricultural  and  rural  education 
department  of  the  National  Education  Association,  Oxford,  says: 

"  I  am  greatly  interested  in  the  provisions  of  the  bill,  and  have 
been  ever  since  the  matter  was  first  started." 

Eugene  F.  Cranz,  secretary  Ohio  State  Grange,  Ira : 

"  I  have  again  been  reading  over  your  vocational-education 
bill,  S.  3,  and  I  am  strongly  impressed  with  the  far-reaching 
provisions  it  contains." 

OKLAHOMA. 

U.    J.    Griffith,   president    Southwestern    State   Normal    College, 
Weaiherf  ord : 

"  I  am  a  believer  in  the  Page  bill  and  am  doing  what  I  can 
in  its  support. 

"  The  time  is  at  hand  when  education  must  stand  upon  some 
other  foundation  than  cultural  sentimentality.  At  least  State 
education  must  do  so.  Against  the  Page  bill  are  arrayed  all  the 
forces  of  f ogyism  and  pedantry ;  and  it  will  encounter  the  bitter 
antagonism  of  all  who  believe  in  special  privilege — the  educa- 
tional hard-shells  who  are  opposed  to  education  '  as  a  means  of 
grace,'  but  would  reserve  it  for  the  '  edification  of  the  saints.'  " 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  Ill 

Dr.  Edmund  D.  Murdaugh,  president  Southeastern  State  Normal 
School,  Durant: 

"  Let  me  at  once  thank  you  for  your  letter  and  the  accompany- 
ing report,  which  I  have  read  to-day  with  pleasure  and  profit. 
"  Please  command  my  efforts  to  aid  in  so  worthy  a  cause." 

B.  C.  Pittuck,  dean  college-extension  division,  Oklahoma  Agri- 
cultural and  Mechanical  College,  Stillwater: 

"  I  have  your  letter  of  February  16  and  wish  to  thank  you 
for  the  copy  of  the  revised  and  perfected  Page  bill.  President 
Connell  and  I  have  been  doing  all  in  our  power  since  our  visit 
to  Washington  to  create  a  proper  interest  in  your  bill,  and  I 
believe  that  some  good  has  been  accomplished.  This  institution 
will  work  for  the  Page  bill  as  strenuously  as  possible." 

Prof.  Minna  C.  Stoner,  Oklahoma  Agricultural  and  Mechanical 
College,  Stillwater: 

"  Your  letter  with  literature  concerning  Senate  bill  3  received. 
I  heartily  indorse  everything  the  bill  involves  because  of  the 
great  impetus  it  will  give  to  our  American  system  of  education 
and  industrial  economic  problems." 

Gov.  Lee  Cruce,  of  Oklahoma,  says: 

"  I  wish  to  thank  you  for  copy  of  Senate  bill  3  introduced 
by  you. 

"  I  shall  be  glad  to  cooperate  in  any  way  possible  with  the 
State  superintendent  to  bring  about  proper  action  along  this 
line." 

K.  H.  Wilson,  superintendent  department  of  education,  State  of 
Oklahoma,  Oklahoma  City,  says: 

"  I  want  to  say  that  I  can  not  speak  too  highly  of  the  Page 
bill.  It  will  certainly  be  of  great  assistance  to  this  section  of 
the  country." 

J.   H.   Connell,  president  Agricultural   and  Mechanical   College, 
Stillwater,  says: 

"  Oklahoma  is  earnestly  in  favor  of  this  bill  because  with  Fed- 
eral aid  we  can  quickly  reach  5,000  common  schools  and  develop 
a  new  agricultural  civilization. 

"  We  are  not  waiting  for  the  Federal  Government,  but  would 
quickly  and  largely  benefit  by  the  wisely  expended  assistance 
provided  by  this  measure. 

"I  favor  the  immediate  passage  of  the  Page  bill  with  some 
minor  amendments." 

Grant  B.  Grumline,  president  Northwestern  State  Normal  School, 
Alva,  says: 

"  In  the  November  issue  of  our  monthly  bulletin,  which  goes  to 
about  1,800  school-teachers  in  this  part  of  the  State,  we  are  urg- 
ing that  each  of  them  use  their  influence  for  the  Page  bill,  Sen- 
ate bill  3." 


112  VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION. 

James  A.  Wilson,  director  Oklahoma  Agricultural  Experiment 
Station,  Stillwater,  says: 

"  I  am  sending  to-night  by  Western  Union  wire  a  night  letter 
expressing  as  strongly  as  my  vocabulary  is  able  to  the  position 
which  we  take  in  Oklahoma  toward  the  Page  bill.  Oklahoma 
stands  squarely  for  the  Page  bill.  Anticipating  this  nation-wide 
industrial  system  of  education  our  State  constitution  directed 
our  legislature  to  provide  for  such  instruction  in  the  common 
schools.  Our  normal  and  agricultural  high  schools  are  doing 
the  grade  of  work  indicated  in  the  Page  bill.  It  provides  for 
our  greatest  need.  I  wish  you  the  greatest  possible  success  in 
this  worthy  movement." 

OREGON. 

Hon.  Oswald  West,  governor  of  Oregon,  says: 

"  Your  letter  of  December  11  and  inclosed  copy  of  your  Senate 
bill  3,  together  with  data  in  regard  thereto,  reached  my  office  dur- 
ing my  absence  in  the  East.  From  the  hurried  view  that  I  have 
been  able  to  give  your  bill  its  general  provisions  meet  with  my 
approval.  I  can  say  as  a  general  proposition  that  any  measure 
which  has  to  do  with  the  betterment  and  upbuilding  of  the  agri- 
cultural school  system  meets  with  my  approval  if  drafted  along 
sane  and  consistent  lines. 

"  I  wish  you  success  in  this  direction." 

The  Pacific  Banker,  Portland,  says: 

"  Some  time  ago  it  was  our  pleasure  to  make  brief  favorable 
comment  upon  a  bill  which  Senator  Page,  of  Vermont,  has  intro- 
duced in  the  Senate,  and  which  we  again  wish  to  give  editorial 
indorsement  because  of  its  peculiar  significance  to  the  entire 
country,  and  to  further  encourage,  if  need  be,  the  action  of  the 
committees  appointed  from  Oregon,  Washington,  Idaho,  and 
other  Western  States  in  its  behalf. 

"  The  question  which  he  agitates  and  which  he  would  thus  aid 
and  abet  is  not  new.  There  is  no  denial  of  the  fact  that  the  great- 
est phase  of  the  problem  of  maintaining  the  future  prosperity  of 
this  country  lies  in  the  need  of  our  better  knowledge,  and  the 
better  knowledge  of  the  generations  to  come,  of  the  science  of 
agriculture.  It  is  eminently  fit  that  the  banker  should  lend  his 
influence  to  the  indorsement  of  Mr.  Page's  recommendation,  which 
has  already  had  the  recognition  of  the  Senate,  for,  if  we  are  ever 
going  to  bring  about  permanent  systems  of  agriculture  in  this 
country,  the  banker,  above  every  other  business  man,  has  got  to 
lend  unto  the  endeavor  his  unfailing  energy." 

W.  J.  Kerr,  president  Oregon  State  Agricultural  College,  Corvallis, 
says: 

"  Your  favor  of  the  4th  instant,  with  inclosures,  has  just 
reached  me.  I  heartily  approve  the  general  purpose  of  the  bill 
as  set  forth  in  the  resolution  adopted  by  the  Senate  Committee 
on  Agriculture  and  Forestry." 


VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION.  113 

The  editor  of  the  Rural  Spirit,  Portland,  says: 

"  I  most  heartily  approve  of  your  educational  bill  and  assure 
you  of  my  appreciation  of  your  efforts  along  this  line  and  of  my 
willingness  to  cooperate  at  any  and  all  times." 

"This  bill  is  especially  intended  to  aid  agriculture,  and  is  a 
very  meritorious  bill,  and  should  have  the  support  of  farmers 
through  their  Representatives  in  Congress." 

The  editor  of  the  Northwest  Poultry  Journal,  Salem,  says : 

"  I  congratulate  you  on  the  bill.     It  ought  to  pass." 
Dr.  Marion  R.  Drury,  president  Philomath  College,  Philomath : 

"  I  have  yours  of  February  22.  Replying,  I  would  say :  I  am  in 
most  hearty  accord  with  your  proposition  for  a  Federal  appro- 
priation to  encourage  vocational  education.  I  have  read  your 
bill,  Senate  No.  3,  with  much  interest,  and  believe  it  is  aimed 
directly  at  the  more  general  education  of  the  masses,  a  thing 
much  needed  in  our  present  educational  system.  I  shall  be  glad 
to  know  that  the  bill  has  passed." 

R.  W.  Allen,  farm  superintendent  Oregon  Agricultural  College, 
Hermiston : 

"  Your  recent  letter  with  Senate  bill  No.  3  inclosed  has  just 
been  received.  You  have  my  most  hearty  indorsement  of  this 
bill,  which  so  substantially  supports  and  encourages  the  advance 
of  vocational  education  throughout  our  entire  Republic.  The 
united  efforts  of  the  States  and  Federal  Government  will  be  able, 
through  this  measure,  to  accomplish  what  the  Nation  has  been 
much  in  need  of,  namely,  proficient  means  of  industrial  educa- 
tion in  every  part." 

The  American  Association  of  Agricultural  Colleges  and  Experi- 
ment Stations  of  Portland : 

"Agriculture,  including  horticulture  and  forestry,  should  be 
a  regular  part  of  public  secondary  education.  There  should  also 
be  a  limited  number  of  special  agricultural  high  schools  in  the 
different  States.  Special  agricultural  schools  will  fill  a  great 
need  by  attracting  the  more  mature  students  who  would  not  go 
to  the  ordinary  high  schools,  and  the  ordinary  high  schools  will 
have  plenty  of  agricultural  students  of  proper  high-school  age." 

PENNSYLVANIA. 

Hon.  John  K.  Tener,  governor  of  Pennsylvania,  Harrisburg: 

"  Senate  bill  No.  3,  copy  of  which  you  were  good  enough  to 
send  me,  was  discussed  and  indorsed  by  the  Pennsylvania  State 
Board  of  Education.  A  letter  was  written  to  each  United  States 
Senator  and  Representative  in  Congress  from  Pennsylvania,  and 
favorable  responses  were  received  from  most  of  them. 

"  Vocational  education  deserves  every  encouragement.  I  trust 
that  the  bill  will  become  a  law." 

49159— S.  Doc.  845,  62-2 8 


114  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

C.    B.    Connelley,   dean    school    of   applied    industries,    Carnegie 
Technical  Schools,  Schenley  Park,  Pittsburgh: 

"Replying  to  your  communication  of  April  15,  would  state  I 
want  to  thank  you  very  much  for  your  letter,  and  will  say  you 
can  find  me  willing  at  any  time  to*  assist  you  in  furthering  your 
bill." 

M.  Friedman,  superintendent  United  States  Indian  school,  Car- 
lisle : 

"  I  am  tremendously  interested  in  the  Page  bill  for  promoting 
vocational  education  in  the  American  schools.  I  think  it  is  one 
of  the  most  progressive  measures,  as  well  as  far-reaching,  in  the 
good  it  will  do,  that  has  been  introduced  in  our  Congress  for 
many  a  year.  Educators  all  over  the  country  are  interested  in 
its  successful  adoption." 

Thomas  I.  Mairs,  professor  of  agricultural  education,  Pennsyl- 
vania State  College,  State  College: 

"  I  want  to  thank  you  for  the  privilege  of  reading  the  Senate 
bill  No.  3.  I  want  to  say  that  I  am  thoroughly  in  sympathy  with 
the  provisions  of  the  bill.  I  sincerely  trust  that  it  will  pass  and 
believe  that  it  will  be  of  great  benefit  to  our  public-school 
system." 

John  P.  Jackson,  dean  school  of  engineering,  Pennsylvania  State 
College,  State  College: 

"  In  reply  to  your  letter  and  kindly  action  in  reply  to  my  tele- 
gram, I  would  say  that  I  heartily  support  your  measure  and  have 
already  taken  it  before  our  American  institute  of  electrical 
engineers  educational  committee,  of  which  I  am  chairman,  and 
have  obtained  their  approval." 

E.  E.  Powers,  secretary  of  the  Pennsylvania  Rural  Progress  Asso- 
ciation, Pennsdale,  says : 

"  We  are  all  rapidly  realizing  the  paramount  importance  of 
proper  educational  facilities  as  the  main  agent  in  eliminating  the 
serious  problems  of  country  life.  As  the  prime  mover  in  bring- 
ing this  question  before  the  country  as  a  concrete  demand,  we 
would  like  to  have  you  speak,  if  possible,  on  the  subject  of  the 
Page  bill." 

P.  M-  Tyler,  principal  Chester  Agricultural  High  School,  says: 

"  Unable  to  attend  conference,  but  we  realize  urgent  need  for 
the  Page  bill." 

George  M.  Philips,  secretary  State  board  of  education,  West  Ches- 
ter, says : 

"The  State  Board  of  Education  of  Pennsylvania  strongly  in- 
dorses this  movement  and  Senator  Page's  bill,  and  at  its  direc- 
tion I  sent  a  letter,  as  secretary  of  the  board,  to  every  Senator 
and  Representative  in  Congress  from  Pennsylvania.  I  very 
much  hope  that  this  measure  will  pass  this  winter.  You  will  get 
valuable  and  important  support  from  Pennsylvania." 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  115 

Andrew  Thomas  Smith,  principal  State  Normal  School,  Mansfield, 
says: 

"  I  write  to  add  my  word  of  encouragement  and  to  express  the 
hope  that  the  measure  ma}^  be  passed  through  Congress  at  this 
session. 

"  It  is  a  bill  which  will  lend  very  great  aid  to  a  measure  now 
occupying  the  chief  place  of  attention  among  the  educators  of 
our  country." 

Mrs.   L.   L.   Blankenburg,  vice  president  General   Federation   of 
Women's  Clubs,  Philadelphia,  writes: 

"  Senator  Page,  you  recognize  the  fact  that  women  are  not 
your  constituents,  except  in  six  of  the  Western  States,  and  that 
pur  wishes  do  not  have  much  weight  with  Congress,  but  if  there 
is  sufficient  publicity  given  to  this  bill  I  believe  club  women 
will  use  such  influence  as  they  can  command  to  secure  its 
passage." 

Thomas  F.  Hunt,  Pennsylvania  State  College  of  Agriculture,  says : 

"For  a  number  of  years  I  have  been  deeply  interested  in  the 
movement  for  the  introduction  of  industrial  training  in  the 
secondary  schools  of  this  country,  as  expressed  in  your  bill.  I 
believe  it  to  be  one  of  the  most  far-reaching  movements  for  the 
progress  of  this  country  that  has  been  before  Congress  in  many 
years." 

The  editor  of  the  Tobacco  World,  of  Philadelphia,  says : 

"Have  given  the  bill  hearty  indorsement  in  editorial." 
The  Times,  McKeesport,  says : 

"A  conference  on  Senator  Page's  vocational  bill  is  to  be  held 
in  Washington,  beginning  with  to-morrow.  This  measure  is 
intended  to  provide  a  course  of  studies  for  the  rising  genera- 
tion which  is  not  now  afforded  in  all  of  the  public  schools,  and 
if  the  bill  goes  through  Congress  and  becomes  a  national  law 
its  results  should  be  very  beneficial.  This  bill  as  an  educa- 
tional idea  far  transcends  in  importance  all  the  political  sparring 
of  the  session  just  opened,  for  it  reaches  down  to  the  child  upon 
whose  life  and  efficiency  national  life  and  efficiency  depend. 

"The  purpose  of  Senator  Page's  bill  is  to  add  vocational 
studies  to  our  public-school  system.  It  follows  closely  upon  the 
idea  of  Senator  Justin  Morrill,  predecessor  of  Senator  Carroll  S. 
Page,  of  Vermont.  Former  Senator  Morrill  was  the  father  of 
the  so-called  land-grant  act  of  1862,  establishing  the  State  col- 
leges of  agriculture  and  mechanic  arts,  and  Senator  Page's  bill  is 
intended  to  carry  down  to  the  secondary  schools  industrial 
education  which  Senator  Mor rill's  bill  created  in  State  agri- 
cultural and  mechanical  schools. 

"  Combining  all  of  the  features  of  the  bill,  it  can  be  said  to 
be  a  unified  movement  to  have  the  Government  aid  in  adding 
vocational  work  in  the  public  schools  throughout  the  States. 
The  bill  should  interest  every  father  and  mother  and  every 


116  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

employer  who  wish  our  schools  to  prepare  young  people  more 
especially  for  definite  profitable  work.  It  should  meet  with 
almost  universal  indorsement  throughout  the  entire  country,  as 
it  is  a  good  measure  tending  in  the  right  direction." 

Wilmer  Atkinson,  editor  Farm  Journal,  Philadelphia,  says: 

"  We  shall  do  what  we  can  for  the  Page  bill.  I  am  glad  the 
educators  who  met  in  Washington  have  indorsed  your  bill  and 
will  work  for  it. 

"  Your  bill  commends  itself  to  my  judgment.  While  tech- 
nical schools  have  been  educating  coordinately  the  hand  and 
brain  of  the  favored  few  of  the  land,  the  great  mass  of  our  youth 
are  forced  to  begin  the  battle  of  life  clumsily  equipped  for  the 
struggle.  Nowhere  is  technical  training  more  urgently  needed 
than  on  the  farm  and  in  the  household.  The  demand  of  the 
time  is  for  scientific  efficiency,  and  this  is  the  only  lever  that  can 
lift  agriculture  to  its  rightful  place. 

"  The  National  Government  can  not  spend  money  for  a  better 
purpose  than  in  providing  every  normal  boy  and  girl  in  the  land 
with  a  fair  and  equal  chance.  A  nation  of  efficient  workers  is  a 
nation  committed  to  universal  peace  and  world-wide  prosperity. 
The  bill  is  a  reform  and  I  hope  that  it  will  come  quickly." 

Paul  Kreuzpointner,  chairman  committee  on  industrial  education, 
American  Foundrymen's  Association,  Altoona: 

"  This  matter  of  the  industrial  education  of  the  masses  of  our 
industrial  workers  is  of  vital  interest  to  the  present  and  future 
material  welfare  of  our  industries,  and  therefore  of  our  country, 
because  the  increase  in  population,  the  diminishing  of  our  natural 
resources  in  quantity  or  quality,  and  the  desirability  to  export 
our  surplus  products  in  competition  with  nations  whose  older 
civilization  gives  them  advantages  in  certain  directions,  has 
created  and  is  creating  economic  conditions  which  make  it  im- 
perative to  supplement  the  education  of  the  few  college  graduates 
with  the  education  of  the  many." 

RHODE   ISLAND. 

E.  E.  Balcomb,  of  the  Rhode  Island  Normal  School,  and  secre- 
tary of  the  National  Education  Association,  department  of  rural 
and  agricultural  education,  and  secretary  of  the  national  committee 
on  agricultural  education,  writes : 

"  Was  very  glad  to  get  your  letter  and  to  note  that  you  are 
not  afraid  to  put  yourself  on  record  in  favor  of  education  as 
against  battleships.  Our  committee  hopes  to  carry  on  an  exten- 
sive campaign  favoring  this  bill." 

Mrs.  Helen  C.  Putnam,  chairman  committee  on  public  school  edu- 
cation, American  Association  for  the  Prevention  and  Study  of  Infant 
Mortality,  Providence: 

"  The  purpose  of  the  bill  is  in  accord  with  our  views,  and  I  am 
inclined  to  believe  that  its  details  are  likely  to  secure  sound  ad- 
ministration of  the  funds." 


VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION.  117 

SOUTH  CAROLINA. 

J.   E.   Swearingen,   State  superintendent  of  education  of   South 
Carolina,  Columbia: 

"  Thanks  for  your  courtesy  in  sending  me  a  copy  of  Senate 
bill  No.  3  as  amended.  These  amendments  greatly  improve  the 
measure.  If  the  bill  is  enacted  it  will  be  a  statesmanlike  and 
constructive  piece  of  legislation." 

D.  B.  Johnson,  president  of  the  Southern  Educational  Association 
and  of  the  Winthrop  Normal  and  Industrial  College,  Rockhill,  says : 

"  The  condition  of  rural  delivery  can  be  improved  best  and 
more  surely  by  relating  the  work  of  rural  schools  to  the  life  of 
the  people  served  by  them.  To  do  this,  elementary  agriculture, 
home  economics,  and  such  practical  subjects  must  be  taught  in 
the  rural  schools. 

"  The  interests  of  the  agricultural  classes  demand  the  passage 
of  this  bill. 

"  I  have  just  returned  from  Houston,  Tex.,  where  the  annual 
meeting  of  the  Southern  Educational  Association  was  held  and 
where  I  wrote  and  presented  the  resolutions  which  were  adopted 
by  the  association.  One  of  those  resolutions  indorsed  the  Page 
bill.  I  thought  you  would  be  glad  to  have  this  resolution,  and  I 
inclose  you  a  copy. 

"  The  Southern  Educational  Association  was  attended  by 
representatives  of  all  the  educational  interests  of  all  the  Southern 
States,  and  the  resolution  indorsing  the  Page  bill  ought  to  have 
some  effect  with  southern  Congressmen." 

E.  J.  Watson,  commissioner  of  th6  department  of  agriculture,  com- 
merce and  industries,  Columbia,  says: 

"  I  am  in  receipt  of  yours  of  December  7,  inviting  me  to  per- 
sonally attend  or  send  a  representative  to  Washington  to  attend 
the  conference  on  the  Page  bill.  I  regret  that  absence  from  the 
State  prevented  my  receiving  your  letter  in  time  even  to  send 
the  night  letter  requested. 

"  I  wish  to  assure  you  that  this  has  been  in  no  measure  due  to 
any  lack  of  interest  in  this  important  matter,  for  there  is  no 
more  earnest  advocate  of  secondary  agricultural  and  industrial 
education  to  be  found  in  the  country  than  myself.  In  the  future, 
if  there  is  anything  I  can  do  in  this  or  any  other  matter  of  equal 
importance  to  the  South,  I  trust  you  will  not  hesitate  to  call 
upon  me." 

S.  C.  Mitchell,  president  University  of  South  Carolina,  Columbia  : 

"  I  desire  to  express  to  you  the  deep  interest  that  I  feel  in  the 
success  of  the  Page  bill,  Senate  bill  No.  3,  seeking  to  promote 
vocational  training  throughout  the  Union.  Speaking  for  the 
South,  I  desire  to  say  that  this  is  a  matter  of  great  importance, 
and  I  sincerely  hope  that  you  will  be  successful  in  your  efforts 
to  strengthen  the  agencies  now  at  work  for  that  cause.  I  shall 
be  more  than  happy  to  do  anything  in  my  power  to  aid  you 
to  this  end." 


118  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

Dr.  R.  S.  Wilkinson,  president  State  Colored  College,  Orange- 
burg: 

"  Your  letter  of  February  16,  describing  the  features  of  S.  3, 
known  as  the  Page  bill,  revised  and  perfected  up  to  date,  re- 
ceived. Upon  reading  the  same  I  find  that  its  provisions  are 
broad  and  liberal,  and  that  if  passed  it  would  increase  wonder- 
fully our  opportunities  of  extension  in  agricultural  instruction. 

"  The  measure  has  my  hearty  support  and  I  shall  do  all  I  can 
to  influence  its  passage." 

SOUTH  DAKOTA. 

Hon.  R.  S.  Vessey,  governor  of  South  Dakota,  Pierre: 

"  I  am  in  receipt  of  your  favor  of  the  14th  inst.,  transmitting 
report  on  Senate  bill  No.  3,  and  in  connection  therewith  have  to 
say,  on  behalf  of  the  people  of  South  Dakota,  that,  in  our  opinion, 
the  measure  presents  a  very  vigorous  and  effective  aid  to  the 
proper  and  best  development  of  our  youthful  citizenship ;  hence 
it  has  our  indorsement." 

C.  G.  Lawrence,  State  superintendent  of  public  instruction,  Pierre, 
says: 

"  Regret  my  inability  to  be  present  at  meeting  December  14 ; 
am  in  hearty  accord  with  the  general  principles  of  Page  bill, 
and  shall  do  all  in  my  power  to  help  secure  its  enactment.  Such 
a  law  will  meet  with  general  favor  in  this  State." 

J.  H.  Hetley,  county  superintendent  of  schools,  Webster,  says : 

"We  have  been  trying  in  our  weak  way  to  aid  the  passage  of 
your  good  measure^  and  a  few  of  us  are  now  looking  about  to  see 
how  we  can  best  do  more  toward  securing  the  passage  of  so  fine 
a  bill.  Any  suggestions  you  might  be  willing  to  give  will  be 
followed  out  as  far  as  practicable. 

"  We  shall  have  the  matter  brought  up  at  our  Northern  South 
Dakota  Educational  Association  and  perhaps  have  some  resolu- 
tion passed,  but  we  think  that  this  is  not  enough.  Its  measures 
are  of  vital  interest  to  the  future  of  our  agriculture,  and  for 
this  reason  both  our  schools  and  our  citizens  will  be  greatly 
improved  by  the  carrying  out  of  its  provisions. 

"  The  Page  bill  is  good  from  my  point  of  view.  It  will  build 
up  an  immense  corps  of  suggestive  supervisors  for  the  whole 
country.  It  will  stimulate  the  agricultural  movement  and  at  the 
same  time  furnish  some  sane  restraints  upon  the  expenditure  of 
public  moneys." 

J.  W.  Heston,  president  State  Normal  School,  Madison : 

"I  thank  you  for  copy  of  your  Senate  bill  No.  3,  and  report 
on  same. 

"  I  am  certainly  interested  in  its  passage  and  feel  confident 
our  entire  Congressional  delegation  will  support  the  bill.  Our 
Senator  Crawford  is  member  of  your  committee  and  wrote  me 
sometime  ago  he  was  giving  you  all  the  help  in  his  power. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  119 

"  I  have  been  on  national  committee  on  agricultural  education 
for  several  years,  working  for  this  or  a  similar  measure  and  I 
should  be  glad  to  do  anything  further  in  my  power  to  secure  its 
passage.  I  believe  in  every  feature  of  the  bill." 

H.  F.  Patterson,  superintendent  Better  Farming  Association  of 
South  Dakota,  Aberdeen : 

"A  great  deal  of  interest  in  better  farming  is  being  taken  in 
this  part  of  the  State,  and  I  believe  that  your  bill  will  be  the 
means  of  spreading  this  kind  of  work  through  each  of  the 
Northern  States." 

A.  N.  Hume,  agronomy  department,  South  Dakota  State  College, 
Brookings : 

"Although  it  is  distinctly  the  function  of  the  several  States 
to  provide  for  the  education  of  citizens  within  their  bound- 
aries it  may  well  be  a  Federal  function  to  assist  the  States. 
Any  law  providing  for  such  assistance  should  be  only  restrictive 
enough  to  provide  for  the  proper  use  of  the  funds.  It  seems 
to  me  that  your  bill  embodies  a  number  of  the  desirable  fea- 
tures." 

G.  W.  Nash,  president  Northern  Normal  and  Industrial  School, 
Aberdeen : 

"At  a  meeting  of  the  Northern  South  Dakota  Educational 
Association  at  Webster  the  committee  on  resolutions  declared 
for  your  measure." 

TENNESSEE. 

The  editor  of  the  Progressive  Teacher,  Nashville,  says : 

"  I  am  ready  and  anxious  to  cooperate  with  you  heartily  and 
in  every  way  possible." 

Prof.  Catharine  A.  Molligan,  dean  department  of  home  economics, 
University  of  Tennessee,  Knoxville : 

"  It  is  with  great  pleasure  that  I  indorse  Senate  bill  No.  3, 
known  as  the  Page  vocational  educational  bill. 

"  I  am  in  favor  of  having  home  economics  taught  in  every 
school  in  the  United  States." 

TEXAS. 

S.  E.  Mezes,  president  University  of  Texas,  Austin : 

"  Senate  bill  No.  3  appeals  to  me  as  a  wise  measure,  conceived 
in  a  spirit  of  broad  statesmanship.  If  it  should  become  a  law, 
as  I  hope  it  will,  it  would  enable  the  Federal  Government  to 
cooperate  helpfully  and  effectively  with  the  States  in  improving 
the  educational  system  of  the  country." 

A.    Caswell    Ellis,    prof essor  philosophy    of    education,    division 
department  extension,  Austin,  says : 

"A  copy  of  your  bill  on  agricultural  education,  together  with 
your  letter,  was  handed  to  me  by  Prof.  Sutton,  on  account  of  the 


120  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

fact  that  I  have  been  especially  interested  in  this  matter  both 
here  and  abroad. 

"  Let  me  express  my  very  heartiest  commendation  of  this  bill. 
I  wish  especially  to  commend  the  encouragement  of  agricultural 
and  industrial  education  in  our  normal  schools,  so  that  we  have 
a  supply  of  teachers  in  our  regular  schools  who  are  competent  to 
teach  these  subjects  and  are  in  sympathy  with  them. 

"  Really,  the  success  or  the  failure  of  the  secondary  agricultural 
education  rests  upon  the  training  and  character  of  men  who  teach 
this  subject. 

"  I  wish  also  to  especially  commend  that  feature  in  your  bill 
which  allows  either  special  agricultural  high  schools  or  regular 
high  schools  with  properly  organized  agricultural  departments  to 
secure  the  benefit  of  this  appropriation. 

"  I  feel  that  I  should  apologize  for  intruding  so  much  upon 
your  attention,  but  the  matter  is  one  that  greatly  interests  me 
and  upon  which  I  have  done  a  great  deal  of  work." 

The  editor  of  Farm  and  Ranch,  Dallas,  says : 

"  It  is  a  most  excellent  measure  and  one  that  is  designed  to 
stimulate  education  in  behalf  of  the  farms  and  those  who  most 
need  this  practical  information." 

The  editor  of  the  Texas  Stockman  and  Farmer,  San  Antonio, 
writes : 

"  Copy  of  your  bill  with  view  to  promoting  a  better  system  of 
education  along  agricultural  lines  received.  We  will  do  all  we 
can  to  aid  you." 

The  Daily  Texas  Live  Stock  Reporter  says : 

"  We  spend  millions  of  dollars  in  teaching  our  children  things 
that  are  of  no  practical  value  to  them  in  the  struggle  for  exist- 
ence. We  call  them  to  do  work  that  we  give  them  no  training 
for  doing ;  we  demand  the  tale  of  brick  but  we  furnish  no  straw. 
Efficiency  is  value  to  the  worker  and  to  the  Nation.  The  youth 
who  goes  out  of  school  with  a  trained  mind  and  hand  is  equipped 
for  the  battle  that  all  must  fight  before  success  can  be  achieved. 
The  money  that  is  wasted  in  years  of  instruction  in  branches  of 
learning  that  profits  nothing  because  it  is  never  applied  would, 
if  spent  in  teaching  our  children  how  to  do  things  and  the  philoso- 
phy of  practical  affairs,  count  in  making  them  more  valuable  as 
citizens  and  making  us  as  a  nation  more  forceful  in  the  affairs  of 
the  world.  Senator  Page's  plan  is  the  beginning  of  a  change  for 
the  better  that  deserves  the  approval  of  all  thoughtful  men." 

F.  M.  Bralley,  State  superintendent  of  education,  Austin,  says : 

"  I  have  read  Senate  bill  No.  3,  recently  received  from  you,  and 
wish  to  say  that  the  enactment  of  said  bill  into  law  would  be  of 
incalculable  value  to  the  educational  interests  of  Texas  and  the 
entire  country.  I  therefore  heartily  indorse  the  bill  and  express 
the  hope  that  it  will  be  given  the  support  of  every  intelligent, 
patriotic  Member  of  the  United  States  Congress." 


VOCATIONAL    EDUCATION.  121 

A.  L.  Paschal,  superintendent  Lubbock  Agricultural  Experimental 
Station,  Lubbock: 

"  I  have  read  your  amended  Senate  bill  3  and  report,  which 
you  recently  sent  to  me.  I  was  very  much  interested  in  reading 
it  and  am  very  enthusiastic  and  anxious  that  it  be  unanimously 
adopted  and  enthusiastically  put  into  practice.  I  heartily  in- 
dorse it. 

T.    W.    Buell,    superintendent   Denton   Agricultural    Experiment 
Station,  Denton: 

"A  copy  of  the  report  on  Senate  bill  No.  3,  and  a  copy  of  the 
bill,  reached  me  the  other  day. 

"  The  optional  feature  is  a  good  idea,  as  this  gives  States  not 
yet  in  shape  to  utilize  all  features  of  the  work  an  opportunity 
to  avail  themselves  of  things  that  may  be  used  and  a  chance  to 
later  use  the  others.  I  approve  it  quite  heartily. 

"  I  believe  each  State  should  be  required  to  add  as  much  to 
its  share  as  it  receives  from  the  Government,  but  I  believe  you 
have  practically  so  arranged  the  matter  in  section  6  of  the  act. 

"  So  far  as  I  have  examined  the  bill  it  has  my  hearty  indorse- 
ment," 

Dr.  J.  O.  Morgan,  department  of  agronomy,  Agricultural   and 
Mechanical  College  of  Texas,  College  Station : 

"  In  my  opinion  this  is  an  extremely  important  measure.  The 
country  is  at  present  badly  in  need  of  just  such  help  as  your  bill 
provides. 

"I  think  that  the  various  State  governments  will  gladly  co- 
operate with  the  National  Government  in  this  further  effort  to 
advance  agricultural  and  allied  industries. 

"  I  am  highly  pleased  with  the  bill  and  offer  you  my  hearty 
support  in  furthering  its  success." 

Rufus  J.  Nelson,  editor  Farm  and  Ranch,  Dallas: 

"  Our  country  could  make  no  better  investment  than  in  train- 
ing the  boys  to  be  producers  and  the  girls  to  be  homemakers. 
A  nation  can  rise  no  higher  than  the  ideals  of  its  citizens,  and  as 
the  majority  of  our  citizens  must  be  producers,  it  is  the  Nation's 
duty  to  educate  and  train  her  people  for  efficient  production. 
Every  dollar  appropriated  for  industrial  education  will  be  an 
investment  for  this  Government  that  will  return  dividends  in 
products  from  our  farms,  factories,  and  mines,  and  the  thousands 
of  unfortunate  boys  and  girls  who  are  now  unable  to  secure  an 
education  will  be  trained  for  citizenship. 

"  Our  schools  do  not  now  meet  the  needs  of  society.  The 
tendency  is  now,  and  has  ever  been,  to  place  emphasis  upon  the 
so-called  art  studies  at  the  expense  of  industrial  training.  This 
is  forcing  thousands  of  bright  boys  and  girls  out  of  school  an- 
nually. They  become  impatient  to  become  breadwinners  be- 
cause they  recognize  that  the  average  high  school  or  college 
course  does  not  qualify  them  for  a  competence. 


122  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

"  Industrial  education  will  interest  students  because  it  trains 
for  the  everyday  duties  of  life  and  makes  efficient  producers.  Let 
us  establish  schools  where  boys  and  girls  with  but  little  means 
may  become  skilled  producers  and  guardians  of  our  domestic 
peace  and  prosperity. 

"  I  believe  that  it  is  our  imperative  duty  to  provide  ways  and 
means  for  training  in  the  practical  things  of  life  those  who  are 
to  live  after  us.  Our  own  citizens  who  are  to  cultivate  our 
farms,  manufacture  our  products,  operate  our  public-service 
utilities  should  have  an  equal  chance  with  those  who  come  from 
foreign  lands.  It  is  our  patriotic  duty  to  invest  the  people's 
money  in  educational  institutions  where  the  people  may  be 
trained  for  industrial  service.  Failing  to  do  this,  will  we  not 
be  responsible  for  social  unrest,  for  anarchy,  and  for  the  dimin- 
ishing returns  in  agriculture,  which  must  inevitably  follow 
unless  our  people  be-  trained  as  breadwinners  ? 

"  The  Page  vocational  bill  would  be  of  inestimable  benefit  to 
us  in  Texas.  We  are  an  agricultural  people,  wholly  dependent 
upon  the  products  from  our  farms,  but  our  people  are  not  train- 
ing their  boys  properly  to  produce  larger  crops  arid  their  girls 
adequately  to  make  home  life  better.  We  have  wonderful  re- 
sources— farm  products,  timber,  minerals,  etc. — but  our  children 
are  not  taught  manufacturing. 

"  But,  the  '  back-to-the-f  arm '  movement  is  being  agitated, 
and  our  people  want  industrial  and  agricultural  education  for 
their  children.  The  sentiment  for  vocational  education  is  now 
apparent.  This  bill  will  make  it  possible  for  every  boy  and 
girl  to  secure  industrial  training. 

"  I  trust  that  you  may  have  the  hearty  support  and  coopera- 
tion of  the  Texas  delegation  in  Congress.  I  am  sending  a  copy 
of  this  letter  to  our  Senators  and  you  may  feel  at  liberty  to  quote 
all  or  any  part  of  this  letter  if  it  will  render  you  any  assistance." 

UTAH. 

W.  M.  Stewart,  principal  of  the  State  Normal  School,  Salt  Lake 
City,  says: 

"  Our  objection  primarily  is  to  the  establishment  of  district 
agricultural  schools  of  secondary  grade  and  not  to  the  other  pro- 
visions of  the  bill.  We  believe  strongly  in  industrial  and  voca- 
tional subjects  as  a  part  of  the  curriculum  of  the  high  school,  but 
we  think  that  the  establishment  of  State  district  agricultural 
schools  of  secondary  grade  would  be  detrimental  to  our  already 
established  high  schools.  If  this  clause  which  provides  for 
separate  agricultural  schools  and  experiment  stations  were  elimi- 
nated, the  bill  would  meet  with  our  approval." 

NOTE. — The  views  of  Principal  Stewart  have  been  met  by  the  elimi- 
nation of  that  part  of  the  bill  which  provides  for  separate  experiment 
stations,  but  the  provisions  for  district  agricultural  schools  of  second- 
ary grade  is  regarded  as  so  all-important  to  the  cause  of  agricultural 
education  that  it  has  been  continued  in  the  bill,  notwithstanding  the 
protest  of  Principal  Stewart. 


VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION.  123 

VERMONT. 

Hon.  John  A.  Mead,  governor  of  Vermont,  says : 

"  I  have  felt  keenly  for  many  years  that  in  Vermont  at  least 
there  was  a  great  demand  for  increased  facilities  along  agricul- 
tural and  educational  lines,  and  the  conditions  of  said  bill  will 
afford  the  desired  relief  and  where  it  is  most  needed. 

"  My  contention  has  been  that  the  prosperity  of  our  Nation 
more  largely  depends  upon  intelligent  development  of  industrial 
agricultural  life  than  to  any  other  cause.  Nature  has  been  prodi- 
gal in  her  gifts  to  our  State  and  Nation,  and  shall  we  exercise 
that  industry  and  knowledge  which  will  permit  us  to  reap  the 
bounty  which  has  been  placed  at  our  door  ? 

"  You  are  working  along  the  right  lines,  and  may  your  success 
equal  your  fondest  anticipations." 

Mason  S.  Stone,  State  superintendent  of  education,  Montpelier, 
says: 

"As  a  financial  measure  it  will  be  a  wealth  producer,  as  it  will 
produce  wealth  producers. 

"As  an  economic  measure,  it  will  eliminate  waste  through  mis- 
fit service  and  greatly  increase  the  efficiency  of  each  successive 
generation. 

"As  a  just  measure,  it  will  afford  equality  of  opportunity  to  a 
million  of  boys  by  enabling  each  to  discover  the  thing  he  can  do 
best  and  by  training  him  to  do  that  thing  the  best  he  can. 

"As  an  educational  measure,  it  will  neutralize  the  traditional 
and  bookish  education  of  the  present  and  will  train  pupils  to 
think,  to  do,  to  be. 

"As  a  civic  measure,  it  will  greatly  enhance  the  Nation's  gen- 
eral intelligence,  which  is  the  guaranty  of  the  Nation's  peace, 
permanence,  and  prosperity. 

"As  a  moral  measure,  it  will  produce  individual  industry  and 
contentment,  community  cooperation  and  harmony,  and  national 
integrity  and  righteousness. 

"It  is  the  most  important  bill  for  the  development  of  the  agri- 
cultural resources  of  the  country  that  has  ever  been  introduced 
since  the  Morrill  bill." 

Martin  G.  Benedict,  principal  St.  Johnsbury  Academy,  St.  Johns- 
bury,  says : 

"  The  Page  bill,  a  bill  to  cooperate  with  the  States  in  encour- 
aging instruction  in  agriculture,  the  trades,  industries,  home 
economics,  etc.,  has  received  my  careful  attention.  I  fully  and 
enthusiastically  indorse  its  provisions  and  urge  our  Representa- 
tives in  Congress  to  do  their  utmost  to  secure  its  passage." 

The  New  England  Farmer,  Montpelier,  says: 

"  Senator  Page's  bill  is  one  of  tremendous  and  far-reaching 
importance  to  the  people  of  this  country.  Its  enactment  will 
open  the  door  of  opportunity  for  tens  of  thousands  of  American 
boys. 


124  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

"  We  need  to  make  our  educational  system  more  practical. 
This  does  not  mean  that  we  are  to  cut  out  the  essential  features 
that  form  the  foundation  of  our  educational  system,  but  it  does 
mean  that  we  ought  to  provide  a  system  of  study  that  will  help 
our  boys  and  girls  to  a  greater  degree  to  go  forth  and  earn  their 
own  living.  It  is  no  secret  that  there  have  been  a  good  many 
studies  that  have  been  of  little  practical  benefit  to  the  student  and 
have  been  forgotten  almost  as  soon  as  the  textbooks  were  closed 
and  packed  away. 

"Battleships  and  standing  armies  are  not  the  only  means  of 
protection  for  a  nation.  Danger  from  a  foreign  foe  is  a  remote 
possibility.  Danger  from  ignorance,  inefficiency,  and  poverty 
is  an  ever-present  peril.  The  foes  of  our  own  household  are  to 
be  dreaded  more  than  any  possible  invasion  from  overseas.  If 
every  year  we  fit  several  million  boys  and  girls  by  the  study  of 
manual  training,  scientific  agriculture,  and  domestic  science  we 
increase  the  wealth  of  the  Nation  by  untold  millions  of  dollars, 
because  we  make  possible  the  earning  of  larger  wages,  the  win- 
ning of  greater  profits,  and  the  more  economic  expenditure  of 
the  earnings  of  the  man  who  works  with  his  hands.  By  increas- 
ing the  possibility  of  securing  more  of  the  comforts  of  life  we 
reduce  thereby  the  army  of  the  discontented,  we  lessen  the  num- 
ber of  misfits  in  our  economic  system,  and  we  make  our  country 
a  safer  and  a  better  place  in  which  to  dwell." 

C.  H.  Spooner,  president  of  Norwich  University,  Northfield,  says: 

"  I  have  given  the  bill  a  first  reading.  It  does  '  look  good  '  to 
me.  May  success  attend  you." 

G.  L.  Green,  principal  Vermont  State  School  of  Agriculture,  Kan- 
dolph  Center,  says: 

"  I  am  unable  to  be  present  at  the  conference  concerning  the 
passage  of  the  Page  bill,  but  I  need  not  tell  you  that  I  am  vitally 
interested  in  its  passage. 

"  This  first  Vermont  State  School  of  Agriculture  is  located  in 
the  home  county  of  the  late  Senator  Justin  S.  Merrill,  father  of 
agricultural  education  in  the  United  States.  Our  school  main- 
tains a  two-year  course,  which  is  intented  to  fit  the  farm  boy  for 
practical  and  intelligent  farming.  We  are  filling  a  gap  between 
the  high  school  and  college.  For  the  first  time,  the  farmers  of 
the  State  have  a  school  of  secondary  grade,  established  prima- 
rily for  their  benefit. 

"  The  appropriation  which  we  have  for  the  present  year's 
use  is  far  too  small  to  establish  our  plant  and  provide  even  the 
beginnings  of  an  equipment.  Schools  of  this  kind  everywhere 
can  not  obtain  State  aid  adequate  to  their  needs,  and  any  bill 
which  Congress  may  pass  which  will  help  the  cause  along  will  be 
a  great  blessing  to  the  Nation.  May  the  Page  bill  speedily 
become  an  act." 

Edward   S.   Abbott,   principal   Montpelier   High   School,   Mont- 
pelier,  says: 

"  I  have  read  with  much  interest  the  bill  introduced  by  you 
in  the  Senate.  It  seems  to  me  that  it  contains  the  elements  of 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  125 

a  mighty  service  to  the  Nation,  in  no  way  second  to  the  Morrill 
law." 

A.  S.  Harriman,  principal  Middlebury  High  School,  Middlebury, 
says : 

"  I  have  carefully  read  the  copy  of  bill  introduced  by  you,  and 
cordially  approve  of  a  bill  so  wide  in  its  scope  and  so  salutary 
in  its  provisions  for  the  welfare  of  industrial  training  throughout 
our  country." 

The  following  resolutions  were  adopted  by  the  Vermont  State 
Grange  at  its  annual  session  December  12,  1911  : 

"Whereas  a  safe,  sure^  and  sound  development  of  the  country 
industrially,  educationally,  and  morally  needs  impulse  and  en- 
couragement, and 

"  Whereas  the  agricultural  conditions  of  the  country  are  rapidly 
approaching  a  state  demanding  a  greater  knowledge  and  an 
intensive  application  of  the  science  of  agriculture  on  account 
of  the  occupation  of  nearly  all  available  land  and  the  constant 
increase  in  population :  Therefore 

"Be  it  resolved  by  the  State  Grange  of  Vermont,  in  its  fortieth 
annual  meeting,  that  we  heartily  indorse  the  vocational  measure 
before  Congress,  with  such  modifications  or  amendments  as  will 
adjust  it  to  various  vocations,  and  urge  its  passage." 

Mrs.  Bertha  M.  Terrill,  department  of  home  economics,  University 
of  Vermont,  Burlington: 

"  Keenly  interested  as  I  am  in  every  effort  that  looks  toward 
the  introduction  of  agricultural  and  home  economic  studies  into 
our  schools  for  the  improvement  of  rural  conditions  of  living,  I 
am  heartily  in  sympathy  with  your  effort  and  hope  it  may 
succeed." 

Philip  R.  Leavenworth,  principal  State  Normal  School,  Castleton : 

"  I  am  in  receipt  of  your  favor  of  February  29.  I  have  exam- 
ined the  Page  vocational  bill  and  also  the  accompanying  report 
on  vocational  education  with  much  interest  and  pleasure.  I  can 
assure  you  that  I  very  heartily  approve  of  the  bill  in  every  re- 
spect and  trust  that  it  will  soon  become  a  law. 

"  I  believe  that  if  this  bill  becomes  a  law  it  will  be  the  greatest 
forward  step  in  education  in  this  country  that  has  been  taken 
since  the  passage  of  the  Morrill  Act.  If  there  is  anything  that  I 
can  possibly  do  in  any  way  to  help  the  good  work  along,  please 
call  on  me." 

VIRGINIA. 

J.  D.  Eggleston,  jr.,  superintendent  of  public  instruction  of  Vir- 
ginia, says: 

"  This  measure  has  been  discussed  by  leading  farmers  and  edu- 
cators throughout  the  State  of  Virginia,  and  I  am  in  position  to 
know  that  the  sentiment  for  it  is  very  strong.  My  opportunities 
for  observation  have  been  unusually  good,  and  I  am  safe  in  saying 
that  were  this  measure  put  to  a  vote  of  our  people  it  would  be 
favored  by  an  overwhelming  majority." 


126  VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION. 

H.  F.  Button,  director  Manassas  Agricultural  High  School,  Ma- 
nassas,  says: 

"I  wish  you  all  speed  with  the  Page  vocational  school  bill. 
We  have  conducted  an  agricultural  school  here  four  years  with 
such  success  that  200  farmers  testify  to  its  value.  We  can  not 
continue  to  grow  without  more  money.  The  State  can  not 
support  us;  Congress  can  and  should." 

Dr.  E.  A.  Alderman,  president  University  of  Virginia,  Charlottes- 
ville : 

"  The  bill  embodies  a  great  idea,  and  if  enacted  into  law  will 
render  an  enormous  service.  I  think  you  would  do  well,  if  I 
may  venture  to  make  a  suggestion  to  you,  to  make  provision  in 
this  bill  for  giving  aid  to  the  departments  of  education  now  ex- 
isting in  the  State  universities  for  the  preparation  of  teachers 
for  the  secondary  schools  and  for  training  men  to  direct  the  edu- 
cational machinery  of  the  State.  Every  American  university, 
especially  those  in  the  South,  has  either  inaugurated  or  is  pre- 
paring to  inaugurate  such  a  department.  One  already  exists  at 
this  university,  and  I  venture  to  predict  that  in  10  years  every 
State  university  will  have  an  organized  department  of  education, 
which  will  not  be  a  normal  school  and  would  not  be  so  recognized. 
There  will  be,  however,  work  of  incalculable  value  in  invigorat- 
ing the  whole  school  system.  Is  it  not  possible  for  you  to  remedy 
this  defect  in  your  bill,  if  I  may  take  the  liberty  of  so  calling  it  ? 
The  bill  would  then  seem  to  me  to  be  an  unusually  powerful  and 
w^ell-thought-out  scheme  for  the  development  of  the  educational 
life  of  the  Nation." 

NOTE. — The  bill  has  been  so  amended  as  to  meet  these  criticisms  of 
President  Alderman. 

J.  L.  Jarman,  principal  State  Female  Normal  School,  Farmville: 

"  Yours  of  the  29th  ultimo  is  received.  I  have  kept  up  with 
the  Page  vocational  bill  since  it  was  first  offered  and  am  thor- 
oughly in  sympathy  with  it  in  every  detail." 

Hervin  U.  Roop,  president  Eastern  College,  Manassas: 

"  I  have  read  your  bill  with  much  interest  and  certainly 
think  you  are  on  the  right  track.  I  am  a  firm  believer  in  voca- 
tional education.  Every  Senator  and  Representative  in  Congress 
should  support  the  Page  bill." 

J.  H.  Johnston,  president  Virginia  Normal  and  Industrial  Insti- 
tute, Petersburg: 

"  Your  letter  of  the  29th  of  February  has  been  received.  In 
reply  would  say  I  have  read  very  carefully  the  bill  known  as 
the  '  Page  vocational  bill '  and  think  it  very  worthy  of  con- 
sideration and  an  early  passage.  We  feel  very  grateful  for  your 
efforts  toward  passage  of  same,  as  general  benefits  will  result  to 
all  the  schools. 

"  P.  S. — I  hope  the  delegation  may  give  united  support." 


VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION.  127 

Dr.  N.  S.  Mayo,  Virginia  Agricultural  Experiment  Station,  Blacks- 
burg: 

"  I  have  read  very  carefully  Senate  bill  No.  3  on  vocational 
training.  Many  years'  experience  as  a  teacher  in  agricultural 
and  mechanical  colleges  and  a  lecturer  at  farmers'  institutes  in 
extension  courses  convinces  me  that  this  bill  will  do  more  to 
advance  the  interests  of  the  producing  classes  in  the  United 
States  both  in  a  material  and  educational  way  than  anything 
else  I  can  conceive  of.  I  believe  that  this  bill  will  add  immensely 
to  the  welfare  and  well-being  of  the  Nation.  I  congratulate 
you  upon  your  foresight  in  the  preparation  and  introduction  of 
this  bill.  It  certainly  should  become  a  law." 

Julian  A.  Burruss,  president  State  Normal  and  Industrial  School 
for  Women,  Harrisonburg : 

"  Replying  to  your  letter  of  February  29  relative  to  Senate  .bill 
No.  3,  known  as  the  Page  vocational  bill,  I  beg  to  say  that  our 
whole  faculty  are  in  entire  accord  with  the  purpose  of  the  bill, 
and  shall  be  pleased  to  do  everything  we  can  to  secure  its  passage. 
We  have  already  written  our  representatives  in  Congress  urging 
its  support." 

WASHINGTON. 

Henry    B.    Dewey,    State    superintendent    of    public   instruction, 
Olympia,  says: 

"  I  have  very  carefully  examined  Senate  bill  3  and  wish  to  give 
it  my  unqualified  indorsement  in  every  particular.  I  hope  that 
the  bill  will  pass  substantially  as  printed  without  material  amend- 
ment. It  means  more,  in  my  judgment,  for  the  youth  of  this 
country  than  any  other  bill  now  pending  in  Congress.  It  is  the 
first  definite  step  toward  a  redirect  education." 

O.  L.  Waller,  vice  president  of  the  State  College  of  Washington, 
Pullman,  says: 

"  We  are  very  much  in  hopes  that  before  Congress  adjourns 
some  good  bill  providing  for  actual  demonstration  to  the  farmers 
and  sons  of  farmers  will  be  enacted  into  law.  We  have  at  this 
institution  calls  for  men  to  do  this  kind  of  work  that  are  far 
beyond  the  means  we  have  to  take  care  of  such  calls.  We  have 
not  appropriation  enough  at  present  to  either  employ  the  men  or 
provide  the  equipment  for  such  work  to  meet  such  demands.  I 
shall  prepare  to  write  you  at  a  later  date  concerning  Senate  bill 
3,  and  shall  seek  an  opportunity  to  look  it  over  more  carefully. 
But  you  may  be  very  sure  that  we  are  greatly  interested  in  some 
legislation  looking  to  actual  services  along  the  line  of  better 
farming  conditions." 

C.  A.  Tonneson,  editor  Northwest  Horticulturist,  Tacoma,  says : 

"  Your  kind  favor  of  recent  date  and  copy  of  your  bill  was 
duly  received  in  time  for  comment  in  our  August  issue.  The 
measure  you  propose  is  along  the  lines  we  have  been  agitating  for 


128  VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION. 

several  years  past,  and  therefore  will  be  glad  to  cooperate  with 
you  in  an  endeavor  to  get  final  action  on  this  bill. 

"  The  Horticulturist  believes  a  measure  of  this  kind  enacted 
would  help  solve  some  of  the  perplexing  problems  of  the  day. 
Theory  and  speculation  have  been  rampant  in  this  country. 
Early  training  industrially  will  continue  to  make  us  strong  in 
all  the  noble  qualities  for  which  the  American  Nation  became 
noted  a  generation  ago." 

N.  D.  Showalter,  principal  State  Normal  School,  Cheney : 

"  I  believe  this  is  one  of  the  best  measures  that  has  ever  been 
presented  along  this  particular  line.  I  feel  that  Federal  aid  in 
these  particular  lines  will  stimulate  very  largely  the  activities 
of  the  States  to  put  the  work  on  a  good  basis.  All  educators  are 
very  much  interested  in  the  trend  of  educational  thought,  more 
practical  ideas,  and  I  feel  that  our  Commonwealth  would  be  very 
"  much  benefited  by  the  improvement  which  is  sure  to  come  through 
the  aid  of  this  measure. 

"  May  I  say  further  that  I  shall  be  glad  to  cooperate  in  every 
way  possible,  and  if  there  is  anything  that  I  can  do  to  further 
the  interests  of  this  bill  I  shall  be  only  too  glad  to  do  so." 

W.  E.  Wilson,  principal  Washington  State  Normal  School,  Ellens- 
burg: 

"  Yesterday  we  had  a  visit  from  nine  superintendents  from 
western  Washington.  At  a  dinner  served  to  them  with  the  mem- 
bers of  our  faculty  and  our  board  of  trustees  by  our  domestic 
science  department,  the  Page  bill  and  its  value  to  this  State  was 
discussed  and  a  resolution  was  proposed  strongly  urging  the  rep- 
resentatives from  this  State  to  support  the  bill. 

"  The  more  I  consider  the  provisions  of  the  bill  and  the  results 
that  would  surely  follow  the  enactment  of  the  measure  the  more 
do  I  appreciate  the  value  of  it  as  an  educational  measure.  It 
seems  to  me  that  the  bill  is  very  wisely  constructed.  It  provides 
for  the  preparation  of  teachers  of  these  practical  subjects  and 
for  securing  in  the  country  schools  equipment  for  the  education 
of  children  for  country  home  life.  If  the  United  States  does 
this  it  will  place  itself  clearly  in  the  front  rank  of  nations  in 
the  matter  of  providing  for  the  general  education  of  the  people 
in  matters  nearest  to  their  interest  and  welfare." 

Fred  W.  Lewis,  secretary  Washington  State  Grange,  Tumwater: 
"  To  the  Members  of  Congress  from  Washington: 

"  HONORABLE  SENATORS  AND  REPRESENTATIVES  :  At  the  last  ses- 
sion of  the  National  Grange  the  matter  of  vocational  education 
was  brought  up,  and  after  due  deliberation  it  was  decided  to  urge 
the  adoption  of  the  Page  bill,  known  as  Senate  bill  No.  3,  as 
being  a  step  in  the  right  direction. 

"  It  is  foolishness  to  cram  our  children's  brains  with  matter 
that  can  be  of  no  value  to  them  in  after  life  and  allow  their 
hands  and  minds  to  remain  entirely  untrained  for  the  duties  that 
will  be  theirs  during  their  lifetime  of  effort  to  obtain  a  livelihood 
for  themselves  and  their  families. 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION.  129 

"  It  will  not  be  possible  to  give  thorough  education  along  any 
line  of  endeavor,  but  it  is  possible  to  give  an  idea  of  the  funda- 
mental principles  of  all  of  those  vocations  which  are  the  bases  of 
the  lifework  of  all  our  working  people. 

u  Washington  State  Grange  wishes  to  urge  upon  you  that  you 
use  your  best  endeavor  to  gain  the  adoption  of  this  law,  and  as 
we  represent  the  wishes  of  over  16,000  members,  consisting  of 
farmers  and  their  families,  we  feel  that  you  will  take  thought 
of  our  wishes  in  this. 

"  The  expense  connected  with  this  law,  if  put  into  effect,  is 
very  small  when  compared  with  the  great  number  that  will  be 
benefited  by  it  and  although  the  figures  look  great  yet  when 
divided  between  those  who  will  pay  it  will  be  very  small. 

"  Hoping  this  may  meet  with  your  approval  and  that  your  best 
efforts  will  be  exerted  in  the  effort  to  make  this  bill  a  law,  I 
remain." 

WEST  VIRGINIA. 

Hon.  William  E.  Glasscock,  governor,  Charleston,  W.  Va. : 

"  I  have  not  had  the  time  to  give  as  much  thought  to  you  vo- 
cational bill  as  I  would  like  to,  but  am  profoundly  impressed 
with  the  wisdom  of  such  legislation  and  the  great  good  that  a 
law  of  that  kind  will  do  for  a  great  majority  of  the  people  of 
this  country. 

"  I  am  sure  that  West  Virginia  would  take  advantage  of  such 
a  law,  and  I  can  think  of  nothing  that  would  be  more  encourag- 
ing to  our  people  as  a  whole  than  the  aid  that  is  proposed  to  be 
given  by  the  Federal  Goverrtment  to  agriculture  and  kindred 
subjects." 

M.  P.  Shawkey,  State  superintendent  of  public  instruction,  Charles- 
ton, says : 

"  I  have  studied  quite  carefully  Senate  bill  3  and  find  myself 
unable  to  improve  upon  its  contents. 

"  West  Virginia  is  just  now  entering  upon  a  determined  cam- 
paign for  bringing  it  into  its  own  industrially,  and  especially 
agriculturally.  We  find  the  financial  burden  of  such  a  project 
is  somewhat  embarrassing,  and  that  Senate  bill  3  will  extend 
to  us  the  strong  hand  of  the  Government.  I  most  heartily 
indorse  the  bill  and  believe  that  its  passage  will  prove  to  be  a 
master  stroke  of  legislation. 

"  Our  State  supervisor  of  high  schools,  Prof.  L.  L.  Friend,  is 
much  interested  in  this  measure  and  is  writing  you  his  opinion, 
which  you  are  at  liberty  to  use  if  you  so  desire." 

Thomas  E.  Hodges,  president  West  Virginia  University,  Morgan- 
town,  says: 

"  Yours  of  December  4,  addressed  to  the  State  Agricultural 
College,  Charleston,  has  come  to  me. 

"  I  most  heartily  approve  the  general  purposes  of  Senate  bill 
3,  a  copy  of  which  accompanied  your  letter. 

"  The  Association  of  Agricultural  Colleges  and  Experiment 
Stations,  at  its  recent  meeting  at  Columbus,  Ohio,  gave  their 
49159— S.  Doc.  845,  62-2 9 


132  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

Prof.  Ely,  of  Wisconsin,  declares : 

"  Industrial  education,  not  for  the  few  but  for  all  people,  for 
every  boy  and  girl  born  in  the  United  States,  without  one  excep- 
tion, is  the  chief  economic  demand  of  our  times. 

"Comparatively  little  is  attained  by  picking  a  few  here  and 
there  and  elevating  them  above  the  masses  by  technical  schools. 
We  want  to  extend  the  benefit  of  industrial  schools  to  all  alike." 

W.  A.  Clark,  principal  Eau  Claire  County  Training  School  for 
Teachers,  Eau  Claire : 

"  Your  letter  of  the  29th  ultimo  with  the  copy  of  the  Page 
vocational  bill  and  the  report  on  vocational  education  were  duly 
received. 

"  I  am  interested  in  the  purposes  which  this  bill  seeks  to  ac- 
complish, particularly  in  the  preparing  of  teachers  for  vocational 
courses  in  the  State  College  of  Agriculture,  for  which  there  is 
great  need. 

"  I  also  believe  the  many  expenditures  for  the  encouragement 
of  instruction  in  agriculture  in  the  secondary  schools  will  be  a 
splendid  investment  for  the  Nation.  I  find  nothing  in  the  bill 
to  which  I  would  take  exception." 

WYOMING. 

Emeline  S.  Whitcomb,  professor  household  science,  University  of 
Wyoming,  Laramie : 

"  Your  bill  has  my  hearty  indorsement.  I  believe  it  will  help 
more  than  any  other  existing  measure  along  educational  lines  to 
help  people  to  help  themselves." 


EXTRACT  FROM  THE  REPORT  OF  THE  COMMITTEE  ON  EDUCATION 
OF  THE  NATIONAL  GRANGE  AT  ITS  MEETING  IN  COLUMBUS, 
OHIO,  1911. 

The  grange  has  ever  stood  for  the  highest  and  most  thorough 
teaching  of  the  young  in  the  common  schools,  not  only  in  the  usual 
branches,  but  especially  in  the  elementary  principles  of  domestic 
science  and  agriculture,  and  we  believe  that  in  a  nation  depending 
so  largely  upon  agriculture  as  a  basis  of  wealth  as  does  the  United 
States,  every  child  should  be  taught  the  basic  principles  of  this  science 
of  agriculture. 

LAW  OF  MASSACHUSETTS  RELATIVE  TO  INDUSTRIAL  EDUCATION. 

SECTION  1.  The  governor,  by  and  with  the  consent  of  the  council,  shall  ap- 
point a  commission  of  five  persons  to  be  known  as  the  commission  on  industrial 
education,  to  serve  for  the  term  of  three  years,  and  to  receive  such  compensa- 
tion as  the  governor  and  council  shall  approve.  The  said  commission  on  its 
organization  shall  appoint  a  secretary  to  be  its  executive  officer,  who  shall  not 
be  a  member  of  the  commission,  and  who  shall  receive  such  salary  as  shall  be 
approved  by  the  governor  and  council,  and  the  commission  may  employ  super- 
visors, experts  in  industrial  and  technical  education,  and  such  clerical  and 
other  service  as  may  be  found  necessary.  The  necessary  expenses  of  the 


VOCATIONAL   EDUCATION.  133 

commission,  including  clerk  hire,  traveling  expenses,  stationery,  and  all  other 
incidental  expenses,  shall  be  paid  out  of  the  treasury  of  the  Commonwealth, 
as  may  be  provided  by  law,  but  shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  eight  thousand 
dollars  for  the  remainder  of  the  present  fiscal  year. 

SECTION  2.  The  commission  on  industrial  education  shall  be  charged  with  the 
duty  of  extending  the  investigation  of  methods  of  industrial  training  and  of 
local  needs,  and  it  shall  advise  and  aid  in  the  introduction  of  industrial  educa- 
tion in  the  independent  schools,  as  hereinafter  provided;  and  it  shall  provide 
for  lectures  on  the  importance  of  industrial  education  and  kindred  subjects,  and 
visit  and  report  upon  all  special  schools  in  which  such  education  is  carried  on. 
It  may  initiate  and  superintend  the  establishment  and  maintenance  of  industrial 
schools  for  boys  and  girls  in  various  centers  of  the  Commonwealth,  with  the 
cooperation  and  consent  of  the  municipality  involved  or  the  municipalities  con- 
stituent of  any  district  to  be  formed  by  the  union  of  towns  and  cities,  as  here- 
inafter provided.  The  commission  shall  have  all  necessary  powers  in  the  con> 
duct  and  maintenance  of  industrial  schools,  and  money  appropriated  by  the 
State  and  municipality  for  their  maintenance  shall  be  expended  under  its  direc- 
tion. 

SECTION  3.  All  cities  and  towns  may  provide  independent  industrial  schools 
for  instruction  in  the  principles  of  agriculture  and  the  domestic  and  mechanic 
arts,  but  attendance  upon  such  schools  of  children  under  fourteen  years  of  age 
shall  not  take  the  place  of  attendance  upon  public  schools  as  required  by  law. 
In  addition  to  these  industrial  schools  cities  and  towns  may  provide  for  evening 
courses  for  persons  already  employed  in  trades,  and  they  may  also  provide,  in 
the  industrial  schools  and  evening  schools  herein  authorized,  for  the  instruction 
in  part-time  classes  of  children  between  the  ages  of  fourteen  and  eighteen  years 
who  may  be  employed  during  the  remainder  of  the  day,  to  the  end  that  instruc- 
tion in  the  principles  and  the  practice  of  the  arts  may  go  on  together :  Provided, 
That  the  independent  schools  authorized  in  this  section  shall  be  approved  as 
to  location,  courses,  and  methods  of  instruction  by  the  commission  on  industrial 
education. 

SECTION  4.  Two  or  more  cities  or  towns  may  unite  as  a  district  for  the  main- 
tenance of  the  industrial  schools  provided  for  in  the  preceding  section,  but  no 
such  district  shall  be  created  without  the  approval  of  the  commission  on  indus- 
trial education. 

SECTION  5.  Whenever  any  city  or  town  or  any  district,  as  provided  in  the  pre- 
ceding section,  shall  appropriate  money  for  the  establishment  and  equipment 
and  maintenance  of  independent  schools  for  industrial  training,  the  Common- 
wealth, in  order  to  aid  in  the  maintenance  of  such  schools,  shall  pay  anually 
from  the  treasury  to  such  cities,  towns,  or  districts,  a  sum  proportionate  to  the 
amount  raised  by  local  taxation  and  expended  for  the  support  of  schools  for 
each  thousand  dollars  of  valuation,  as  follows:  Cities  and  towns  expending  more 
than  five  dollars  for  each  thousand  of  valuation  for  the  support  of  public 
schools  to  be  reimbursed  by  the  Commonwealth  to  the  amount  of  one-half,  those 
raising  and  expending  between  four  and  five  dollars  per  thousand  to  the  amount 
of  one-third,  and  those  raising  and  expending  less  than  four  dollars  per  thousand 
to  the  amount  of  one-fifth,  of  the  cost  of  maintaining  industrial  schools:  Pro- 
vided, That  no  payment  to  any  city  or  town  shall  be  made  except  by  special 
appropriation  by  the  legislature. 

SECTION  6.  The  commission  on  industrial  education  shall  make  a  report  an- 
nually to  the  legislature  relative  to  the  condition  and  progress  of  industrial 
education  during  the  year,  stating  what  industrial  schools  have  been  established 
and  the  appropriations  necessary  for  their  maintenance,  in  accordance  with  the 
preceeding  section,  and  making  such  recommendations  as  the  commission  on  in- 
dustrial education  may  deem  advisable;  and  especially  shall  the  commission 
consider  and  report  at  an  early  day  upon  the  advisability  of  establishing  one  or 
more  technical  schools  or  industrial  colleges,  providing  for  a  three  or  four  years' 
course  for  extended  training  in  the  working  principles  of  the  larger  industries 
of  the  Commonwealth. 

SECTION  7.  The  trustees  of  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural  College  are  hereby 
authorized  to  establish  a  normal  department  for  the  purpose  of  giving  instruc- 
tion in  the  elements  of  agriculture  to  persons  desiring  to  teach  such  elements  in 
the  public  schools,  as  provided  in  sections  three  and  four:  Provided,  That  the 
cost  of  such  department  shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  five  thousand  dollar?  in 
any  one  year,  and  that  at  least  fifteen  candidates  present  themselves  for  such 
instruction. 


134  VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION. 

SECTION  8.  Section  ten  of  chapter  forty-two  of  the  revised  laws,  and  all  acts 
and  parts  of  acts  inconsistent  with  this  act,  are  hereby  repealed.  (Approved, 
June  21,  1906.) 

In  1908  the  term  of  the  commission  created  by  the  foregoing  act  was 
extended  to  five  years  and  its  powers  and  duties  were  enlarged,  as 
indicated  in  the  following: 

The  commission  shall  have  all  necessary  powers  in  the  conduct  and  mainte- 
nance of  independent  industrial  schools,  and  money  appropriated  by  the  Com- 
monwealth or  by  municipalities  for  their  maintenance  shall  be  expended  under 
its  direction  or  with  its  approval.  Any  city  or  town  may  also  establish  inde- 
pendent industrial  schools  in  charge  of  a  board  of  trustees  which  shall  have 
authority  to  provide  and  maintain  such  schools.  Such  schools,  if  approved  by 
the  commission  on  industrial  education  as  to  location,  courses,  and  methods  of 
instruction,  shall  receive  reimbursement  as  provided  in  section  four  of  said 
chapter  five  hundred  and  five. 

Any  resident  of  Massachusetts  may,  with  the  approval  of  the  commission  on 
industrial  education,  attend  an  independent  industrial  school,  as  provided  for  in 
this  act,  located  in  any  city  or  town  other  than  that  in  which  he  resides,  pro- 
vided there  is  no  such  school  supported  in  whole  or  in  part  by  the  city  or  town 
in  which  he  resides,  upon  payment  by  the  city  or  town  of  his  residence  of  such 
tuition  fee  as  may  be  fixed  by  said  commission;  and  the  Commonwealth  shall 
repay  to  any  city  or  town  one-half  of  all  such  payments.  If  any  city  or  town 
neglects  or  refuses  to  pay  for  such  tuition,  it  shall  be  liable  therefor,  in  an  action 
of  contract,  to  the  legally  constituted  authorities  of  the  school  which  the  pupil 
attended  under  the  approval  of  said  commission. 

In  1909  section  5  of  the  law  of  1906  was  amended  to  read  as  follows : 

Upon  certification  by  the  board  of  education  to  the  auditor  of  the  Common- 
wealth that  a  city,  town,  or  district,  either  by  moneys  raised  by  local  taxation 
or  by  moneys  donated  or  contributed,  has  maintained  an  independent  industrial 
school,  the  Commonwealth,  in  order  to  aid  in  the  maintenance  of  such  schools, 
shall  pay  anually  from  the  treasury  to  such  cities,  towns,  or  districts,  a  sum 
equal  to  one-half  the  sum  raised  by  local  taxation  for  this  purpose:  Provided, 
That  no  payment  to  any  city  or  town  shall  be  made  except  by  special  appro- 
priation by  the  legislature. 

By  another  act  passed  in  1909  the  commission  on  industrial  educa- 
tion was  consolidated  with  the  State  board  of  education  and  its 
powers  were  transferred  to  the  new  board  thus  constituted.  Sections 
1  and  2  of  this  act  follow: 

The  board  of  education  shall  consist  of  nine  persons,  three  of  whom  shall 
annually  in  April  be  appointed  by  the  governor,  with  the  advice  and  consent  of 
the  council,  for  terms  of  three  years,  except  as  hereinafter  provided.  The  mem- 
bers of  the  board  shall  serve  without  compensation.  During  the  month  of  June 
in  the  current  year  the  governor  shall  so  appoint  all  of  said  nine  members  of  the 
board,  whose  terms  of  office  shall  begin  on  the  first  day  of  July,  nineteen  hundred 
and  nine,  three  for  terms  ending  May  first,  nineteen  hundred  and  eleven,  three 
for  terms  ending  May  first,  nineteen  hundred  and  twelve,  and  three  for  terms 
ending  May  first,  nineteen  hundred  and  thirteen.  Four  of  the  present  members  of 
the  board  of  education  and  one  of  the  members  of  the  commission  on  industrial 
education  shall  be  appointed  members  of  the  board  of  education  provided  for  by 
this  act. 

The  board  of  education  shall  exercise  all  the  powers  and  be  subject  to  all  the 
duties  now  conferred  or  imposed  by  law  upon  the  present  board  of  education,  or 
upon  the  commission  on  industrial  education  by  chapter  five  hundred  and  five  of 
the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  six  and  by  chapter  five  hundred  nntl 
seventy-two  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  eight,  and  acts  in 
amendment  thereof  and  in  addition  thereto,  except  as  may  otherwise  be  provided 
herein. 

o 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


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General  Library 

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